Unexpectedly Beautiful Suggestion
by alosercanwin
Summary: Draco gets thrown in the middle of Voldemorts plan to destroy Hermione, resulting in her becoming pregnant. Will he be able to finish the job at hand or will he realize that this is the most unexpectedly beautiful suggestion he's ever heard?
1. one: that night

Draco stood in the back of the room, leaning against the wall with his arms crossed, while his father sat down at the dining room table, listening to every word the dark lord was saying. They weren't the only three in the room, either. Voldemort had become completely frustrated with Potter and the way he seemed to go on untouched both mentally and physically through all these years. He knew that war was coming soon, and he knew he had to break Potter down, and quickly, before it was too late. When he couldn't think of anything, he decided to go towards his faithful "friends" and ask them what he should do, not something he usually did, and when on the very rare occasion he did do it, he was testy. If you made even a suggestion that he didn't like, he would cut you loose right there.

As more stupid suggestions came out, and Voldemort started to become more frustrated, Draco found it hard to stop smiling. Voldemort, on the other hand, looked like he was about to snap on somebody. "Paranoia." One of the deatheaters who went by the name of Rowle suggested. "Just make him paranoid until he breaks." Draco laughed silently to himself.

"There's nothing to make him paranoid about. He already knows the wars coming and he knows he's going to be dying soon." Another deatheater pointed out as they all agreed. "How about destroying him mentally so it's easier to do the job at the end?" Everybody stared at the deatheater with question in their faces, wondering what the hell he was talking about. When he noticed that they didn't seem to understand him, they continued. "Potter has his mudblood and his blood traitor friend, right? What if we slowly took them apart? Not physically pulling them apart, but messing with their heads in a way, putting them down. The pain will eat them alive, and eventually…it'll reach Potter and start to feed on him."

Voldemort smiled slightly, starting to like the idea. "And how do you propose we accomplish this?" He asked, interested.

The deatheater shrugged slowly. "Personally, I'd go for the mudblood first. She's the one with the brains. Without her, Potter and the blood traitor, Weasley, won't know what to do."

"Any ideas, though? How can we destroy her!" Voldemort yelled, now getting frustrated again.

"Draco." Lucius said to Voldemort. Draco stood up straight at the mention of his name, not really wanting to be brought into the conversation, let alone be the main topic of it. "Draco can do it, my lord. He attends school with the piece of filth."

"It would be so easy." Rowle stated quietly, almost to himself.

The dark lord grinned and then turned to face Draco. "Well…?" Draco looked at Voldemort and then at his father. His father looked like he would kill him if he didn't respond soon. Lucius also knew that if Draco succeeded in this, it would help them when it came time for Voldemort to decide who was truly loyal to him. He didn't want the weight on his shoulders, but he knew he had no choice. He nodded as the dark lords grin became even bigger, hoping that this plan could finally do some good with destroying the great Harry Potter.

***

Hermione sat down next to Ron and Harry in the Gryffindor Common room, trying to help them complete their transfiguration homework before tomorrow morning. "Come on, guys, think." Hermione stated, determined for them to do it on their own without her giving them to much help. Ron sat on the floor with his legs against his chest, biting the side of his lip while Harry was sitting by the fire, looking outside the window, mentally not in the room with them. "You guys are hopeless." Hermione said rolling her eyes and running her hands through her hair, feeling a headache coming on.

"Sorry were not as _brilliant_ as you are, Hermione." Ron said emphasizing his words without realizing how much it would piss Hermione off.

"Well then excuse me for trying to help you." Hermione said crossing her arms and sticking her nose in the air. "I'd like to see you finish that on your own, Ronald Weasley." She said pointing to his extremely hard homework.

"Now you know I can't do that, Hermione. I need you to do it for me, please."

"Do it for you!" Hermione yelled, standing up. Harry had zoned back in when she yelled and was now curious as to what was going on, although he was pretty sure he already knew. "What do I look like to you?"

"My brilliant girl friend and best friend who would do anything for me."

"Guess again." Hermione said standing up and starting to walk away.

"Hermione… come back. I need you."

Hermione turned around and looked at him. "I'm not doing your homework for you, Ron. You should have had that done yesterday. I'm going to bed since _my_ homework is completed." Hermione said turning around and walking up the stairs to her dormitory.

"Can I copy yours then?" She heard Ron yell as she closed her door. She closed her eyes and took a deep, relaxing breath, then walked over to her dresser and put on a pair of boxers that she wore to bed and a plain white t shirt. She walked into the bathroom and grabbed her tooth brush. She brushed her teeth and then her hair. As she turned on the hot water in the sink to wash her face, she heard her dormitory door open slowly, and knew it was probably Ron coming in to apologize just so she could do his homework for him, but it wasn't going to work. This time she wasn't' going to give in.

As she heard the footsteps getting closer, she put her hands under the water and filled them up with the warm liquid. She lowered herself to the sink and pressed the hot water into her face, closing her eyes and letting it soak into her pores. As she washed her face, she felt a hand move up and down her arm and then lips close in on the back of her neck. She raised her head, keeping her eyes closed, enjoying the feeling of Ron's lips on her neck. She tilted her head to the side as he began to kiss her harder, wrapping his arms around her and massaging her stomach. She smiled. "Ron… that feels so-" She opened her eyes and turned to face Ron. The only problem was, it wasn't Ron. "Malfoy?" She asked, pushing his arms away and rubbing the spot on her neck where he had been kissing her. He smiled at her and took a step closer to her, only causing her to step backwards. "Wh-What are you doing here?" She asked nervously as he kept walking closer to her. "How did you get up here?"

He ignored her. "What were you saying before, Granger? How did it feel?" Draco asked Hermione as she backed up to far and ran into the corner of a wall, still the same distance from Draco as she had started out. He snickered at her scared face and the way she reacted when she hit the wall. Hermione coulldn't move back anymore and Draco kept coming closer to her. "How did it feel?" He repeated his question.

"Get away from me, Malfoy. I swear I'll curse you." She said searching herself for her wand, but to her despair, she couldn't find it anywhere. Sudden panic hit her when she saw Draco holding it up so she could see it, and laughing at her. "Give me my wand, Malfoy." She said scared for her life. Draco took her wand and flicked it at the door, making it close and lock itself. He took a few more steps closer to her, until his body was pressed against her on the corner of the room, trapping her between the two walls and his body. He took his wand free arm and put it against the wall, over her shoulder and then put the tip of her wand at her throat.

Hermione's heart began to race, her breathing became uneven, and she started to shake. "I asked you a question, Granger. It's rude not to answer." She tried to swallow the lump in her throat, but was unsuccessful. He laughed at her. "Are you scared, Granger?" He asked taking his hand off the wall and putting it on her cheek, rubbing her cheek bone with his thumb. She lied and shook her head no, even though she knew that he could see right through her. "Well… you should be." He said in her ear, now bringing tears to her eyes.

"Please, Malfoy… don't-" She didn't get to finish her shaky sentence because Draco through his finger over her mouth, tears now running down her cheeks.

"Shh, my little mudblood." He said grinning. "No need to beg." He put his face to hers and licked the tears off of her cheeks. She turned her head in disgust, which didn't please Draco at all. He grabbed both of her hands and through them up against the wall, pressing his lips against hers and forcing his tongue into her mouth. She tried to squirm away, but this only made him grab her wrist more tighter and push his body against hers more. He released the kiss and looked into Hermione's tear stained eyes, laughing. "I thought you weren't scared?" He asked her, not caring if she answered or not. He took her wand and muttered a spell under his breath. He released the grip on her wrist, and when she tried to bring them down to push him away, she found she couldn't. Whatever spell he had muttered had her hands stuck up in the air, giving Malfoy complete control over her.

Realizing this, she began to cry more now. Hermione could feel his arousal on her legs, and she hated the feeling. Draco kissed her again, this time shoving his hands up her shirt and cupping her breast. Hermione, now really scared and feeling helpless, tried to scream for help, but Draco just laughed at her. "None of your friends can hear you, Granger. Might as well save your energy for what's to come." He kissed her again, this time biting her lip as he ribbed her shirt in half and let it fall to the floor. He kissed the top of her breast as he unclipped her bra, letting that fall to the ground. He moved his way from the top of her chest to her lips, kissing her hard and shoving his tongue into her mouth yet again.

As he kissed her, he gripped the side of her boxers and let them fall the ground. Putting his hand on the side of her face and massaging it, he smirked at her. "Having fun yet?" She closed her eyes, not wanting to watch or even look at him. "I asked you a question." She didn't answer, so he grabbed the side of her panties and let them fall to the ground. She kept her eyes closed and tilted her head up towards the ceiling. Draco laughed and started to bite at the center of her neck, now lowering two of his fingers to her centre and moving them in circles. "I asked you…" He stared, then shoved the two fingers inside of her, making her gasp. "a question… and I expect an answer." He finished, now using his thumb to play with her clit.

"Fuck you." She said pissed off and through clenched teeth, now hating this man more and more by every second that passed.

He smiled at her and let out a little laugh. "Poor choice of words, mudblood." As he said this, Hermione gathered up all the courage and bravery she had left in her and spit right in his face. He was disgusted, but smiled it off, taking the fingers he had in her and whipping the spit off of his forehead. "I could use this." He said lowering his fingers back to her centre, now covered in her spit, spreading it around. "I'm guessing by how tight you are, that you haven't had any little Ronald Weasleys shoved up you yet, have you?" She didn't answer him, just glared at him as more tears came from her anger filled eyes. He took her wand and tapped it on his clothes, making them disappear.

"Please…" She begged softly, wanting him to stop. "Please, I'll keep this quite, I won't tell anybody, it's not too late. Just please stop." Hermione was crying now harder then she was before.

Draco laughed in her face, removing his hands from her and cupping her breast, sticking the tip of his cock inside of her, making her draw back her breath. "You're not going to tell anybody anyway. And if you do, we'll just be right back in this same spot, the only difference is, when it's over, you won't be walking out of here alive." She bit her lip and he kissed her forcefully, ripping the lip she was biting from her grasp, only to bite it for her. He pushed inside of her, grinding his hip against her, kissing the side of her neck and cupping her breast. He allowed her to come a couple of times before he came himself.

He pulled out and used her for support as he caught his breath. When he caught his breath, he released the spell he had on her and let her fall to the floor. She quickly scrambled for her ripped shirt and used it to cover herself before he could take any more glimpses as her. He got changed and gathered up her clothes that were scattered all over the floor. He kneeled in front of her. She kept her eyes on the floor, not wanting to look at him. He grabbed her under her chin with force and turned her head so it faced him. She looked into his eyes as he smirked at her, throwing her clothes into her face. "Why do you look so sad, Granger? At least you're not a bench warmer anymore." He laughed as he gave her a hard kiss on the lips, forcing his tongue in for one last time. She turned her head away quickly and bit her lips together. Draco laughed at her. "See you around." He stood up and walked out of the room, throwing her wand in the trash before slamming the door shut.

* * *

_this is my first lemon and i just discovered that im not that great at them lol. i wrote this to get away writers block, but i have plans to eventually turn it into a full length story. that why it has the name it has that makes zero sense right now. so please please please review. i love reviews and im all ears when it comes to them. ideas, comments, or questions, please dont' hesitate. _

_thanks for reading!_


	2. two: aches and pains

The right side of her pale face was laying on her pillow, she haven't moved it in hours, just like the rest of her body, which laid under the covers. She could no longer feel her hands and arms since she had them tucked under her body and after about the first hour, they had gone completely numb. Her cheeks were red and stained from the tears she had been letting fall down them all night long, and her eyes had stayed locked on the trees that danced in the wind outside of her room. The moon that she had also been watching intensely had disappeared behind the dancing trees that now stood still in the presence of the cold January sun.

A knock on her door suddenly woke her up out of her restless thoughts. She closed her eyes and took in a breath of fresh air, then brought her arms out from under her body and whipped the remaining tears off of her face. When the knock came again, she knew it was time for her to face reality and everything that came with it. She through her legs over the side of her bed and walked over to the door. She kept her arms tight against her chest, wand in her right hand, hidden under her arm pit. She took a quick look at herself in the mirror, displeased with how she looked, and then went to answer the door. She put her hand on the handle only to pull it away suddenly as another knock came, only this time it was with force and impatience.

She got herself back together, telling herself it was probably nothing, then turned the handle and opened the door. She was relieved when she saw Ron and Harry standing there. They had smiles on their faces, but they soon disappeared when they saw the way she looked. "Hermione…" Harry said carefully, not sure if she knew had awful she looked.

"Oh my god, what happened to you?" Ron asked, impatiently, but it was full of care as well. Hermione turned back towards the mirror and looked at herself carefully one more time. Her hair was going out in all different directions, except for on her right side, which was almost straight from her laying on it all night long. The left side of her hair looked almost matted and her bangs were poofing outwards from all the sweat that was now dried to her forehead and the rest of her body. Her eyes had deep, dark circles under them and her bottom lip was big and she could feel an indent on the inside of her lip from where _he_ had bit her. Her body was sore and she could barely move. Even though she hadn't looked at herself completely yet to check the damage he had done to her, she could tell it was bad. " Hermione?" Ron called, wanting her to answer his question.

She wanted to tell them, but she knew she couldn't. "I'm fine. I didn't get much sleep." She put her hand over the left of her neck where she could feel a bruise and hoped to god that Ron or Harry hadn't noticed it yet. They both looked at her with a sideways glance, knowing that she wasn't telling the truth. "I think I'm sick." She added.

"You think?" Ron said. "Come on, I'm hungry." He whined, walking down the stairs and back towards the Gryffindor common room.

Harry stood still, staring Hermione down. She looked at him and bit her lip. He knew her so well, and she could tell that he knew she was lying. "Are you coming to breakfast?" Harry asked, surprising Hermione by dropping the question. She didn't feel hungry, but she knew that was because she didn't have an appetite. She had a feeling she was probably starving but just couldn't feel it, so she decided that she better eat since she mentally wasn't with it today and the food would help her to get through it. She nodded and Harry nodded back. "I'll let you get ready. Meet me and Ron downstairs?"

She forced a smile and nodded, closing the door as Harry walked down the steps. She put on her school clothes that she wore the day before and looked at herself in the mirror. She grabbed her scarf she had hanging over her mirror and wrapped it around her neck so the hicky wasn't visible. She grabbed a hair tie and quickly through her hair back, putting a head band in her hair to keep her bangs pushed back. She looked at herself in the mirror and shook her head. She looked exactly like she felt, like crap. She through her robe to the side and grabbed her favorite sweat shirt off of the back of her chair. She put it on and quickly through the hood over her head. She kept the scarf on and walked out of the room and down into the Gryffindor common room. Ron stood up immediately when he saw her and started to head for the door. She followed him with Harry trailing behind her.

To Hermione's despise, Ron was walking extremely fast to get down to the great hall for breakfast. She was sore everywhere on her body, and would rather walk slowly, but not wanting to show Harry or Ron she was in pain, she pushed through, relieved when she was able to take a seat at their table. She exhaled a deep breath and a yawn, covering her mouth and closing her eyes. When she opened them, they seemed to look straight at the Slytherin table, where they caught the eyes of Draco Malfoy. She quickly turned then away and grabbed a piece of toast from the middle of the table, pulling it apart with her fingers and eating small bites. As she ate in silence, barely listening to Harry and Ron's conversations, she could feel Draco's eyes on her, and she couldn't help but keep looking up at him.

Every time she did look up to see if he was still looking at her, he had a evil kind of smirk on his face, one that sent shivers down Hermione's spine. The creepiest thing about it was, he continued doing everything he would originally do at breakfast, only his eyes never left Hermione and his smirk never faded. After about the sixth time she caught eyes with Draco, she kept them locked with his for a few seconds longer than usual, hoping to show him that she wasn't afraid of him, even though it was pretty obvious that she was terrified of the boy. "What are you looking at Hermione?" Harry said, leaning in closer towards her and looking at the direction she was looking at.

"Nothing." She said, quickly throwing her head down to her plate. Harry looked at with a questionable look on his face. She hated lying to her best friend, and she knew that sooner or later he would figure out who she was staring at. Once again, however, Harry dropped the subject and continued to eat his eggs. Hermione glanced up at Draco one more time, only to see his smirk had grown larger. She couldn't take it anymore; she had to get out of there. She stood up and Harry and Ron looked at her. "I need to go get ready for class." She said, knowing they would buy it since they knew how she looked under her maroon sweat shirt. Ron nodded and then went back to his feast, but Harry just looked at her. She tried to smile at him, then quickly turned away and started towards the main doors that led out to the main stairway. When she was about halfway to the door, to her terror, she saw Draco stand up and start to walk out the door, keeping his eyes on her.

Terrified, she quickly made longer steps, which was an extremely harder task considering the bruises on her inner legs and the soreness of her muscles. She got out of the door and made for a quick dash down a hallway before Draco could see which say she went, but before she could she felt a hand grab the back of her upper arm and push her into the hallway she was going for, and against the wall. She turned to face who she already knew was touching her. "Hello, Granger." Draco said with a smirk.

Hermione took a deep breath and could feel her heart racing against her chest and the blood pulsating through her arms and legs. She had to stay tough, she couldn't let him get to her, even though he already had, and he knew it. "Malfoy." She said trying to sound confident and looking into his dark grey eyes.

He had his hand still wrapped around her arm and his other hand was against the wall, keeping her corned in. "I had fun last night." He said, almost laughing. She just ignored him, keeping her eyes on the ground. "Why are you wearing a scarf inside, mudblood? Did I leave a mark that you don't want anybody to see?" He asked, taking his hand that was against the wall and reaching for where he knew her hicky would be. She slapped his hand away before he could touch her, which didn't make him happy. He tightened his grip on her arm and went to smack her across the face, but stopped suddenly when he saw how quickly she turned her head, getting ready for the impact. He laughed at her. "Scared?" He asked, just like he had the night before. She looked up at him with pure hatred in her eyes. When he saw the look she gave him, he slightly released his grip from her arm and looked up at her, still smirking but not as bad as he was in the great hall. "I can feel you heart beat through your arm, Granger."

"What do you want, Malfoy?" She asked quietly, wanting him to let her go but afraid of what he might do to her if she tried to escape his grip.

"Did you tell Potter or Weasley, yet?" He asked.

"No." She said through clenched teeth. "You told me not to… remember?" She said getting smart with him on accident.

He took a step closer to her, forcing Hermione to move her body tightly against the wall. "Don't… get smart with me." He said through clenched teeth, his attention now on her rising and falling chest.

"Yes, sir." She said sarcastically, trying to draw his attention away from her chest, hoping he wouldn't get any ideas.

He faked a laughed and looked at her, with a smirk on his face. Before Hermione knew what happened, his smirk had faded and his hand that was on her arm had released its grip, but moved up to her throat, putting pressure on the bruise he had given her the night before. "I'm warning you, Granger. _Don't_ get smart with me." He said tightening his grip before letting go of her completely and turning his back on her. "We should do that again some time." He said as he walked away, then he stopped and turned back towards her, getting himself closer to her then he was before and putting his face next to hers. "Maybe you can be on the top." He whispered in her ear. He grabbed under her chin and gave her a quick hard kiss on the lips, then slapped her on her face lightly and walked away laughing.

* * *

_I hope you like it so far! If you do, let me know and if you don't, then let me know as well. Any thoughts or ideas as to what's going to happen? LET ME KNOW. I'm all ears when it comes to reviews. :)_


	3. three: stupid plus sign

Draco walked back up to his common room after breakfast and his little 'meeting' with Hermione and plopped down on the couch. He had about an hour before he had to go to class and decided he was going to spend that time sitting down by the fire and relaxing. As he ran his fingers through his hair and looked into the fire, he heard a squeak and turned to see Pansy running towards him. He rolled his eyes as she sat down next to him. "Hey Dracy!" She said, grabbing his hands and giving him a kiss on the lips.

"What do you want, Pansy?" He asked, shaking her hands off of him.

She looked taken back and upset that he had refused to hold her hands, but continued on like nothing happened. "I wanted to come and sit with you before class."

"Ugh." Draco said quietly, hoping that she wouldn't hear him. "I have homework to do." Draco lied standing up and starting to walk away towards his room. Pansy looked upset again, but stood up and walked in the other direction pouting. Draco laughed at her facial expression and then continued upstairs to his room. He reached his bed and laid down on his back, looking up at the ceiling. This was often the place his mind wandered and he gathered all his thoughts, although what he thought about wasn't something he was expecting to. The thing was, he couldn't get Hermione out of his mind. Whenever he saw her, his heart started to race and he got the sudden urge to touch her and kiss her all over. "No." He said to himself, shaking the thought out of his head. He assured himself it was just his male hormones getting the best of him, and him craving the adrenaline rush he got the night before.

After about half an hour of sitting and thinking, he got up and grabbed his books, then started to head down towards his next class, transfiguration. The classroom was still pretty empty except for a few people who decided to come to class early, one of which was Hermione Granger. He smirked and walked over to her, sitting down in the empty seat next to her. Hermione assuming the person who sat next to her was Ron, turned with a smile on her face to say hi to her boyfriend. However, when she saw it was Draco, her smile faded and she jumped back, almost falling off of her chair. Draco laughed at her. "What do you want?" She asked, obvious fear in her voice.

Draco smirked at her and ran his fingers through her hair. She bit her lip and closed her eyes tight, pulling back slightly, but not hitting his hand away, afraid he might hurt her. He laughed to himself at how scared she was. "Why are you so scared of me, mudblood?" He asked, taking his hands out of her hair and putting it on her knee.

"Don't call me that." She said through clenched teeth.

"And what are you going to do about it, _mudblood_?" He asked, sitting back in the chair and crossings his arms. Hermione bit her lip and looked down at the ground. "That's what I thought." She looked up at him for a second, keeping her head down. "Anyway… I'd thought I'd join you as your partner today in class." He said with a smirk, not actually going to but waiting to see her reaction. She looked up at him with a pleading look in her eyes and bit the side of her lip. Draco stood up as the bell rang, gripping her shoulder and squeezing it as he walked by. "I'll be seeing you later." He said retreating to the back of the classroom.

The rest of the day went by slowly for Draco. Even though he told Hermione he would see her later, he never actually planned on it. He wanted her to walk around paranoid, thinking that he was going to pop out of a corner. He loved the way she was afraid of him, but didn't like what he had to do to get her that way. If he had a choice, he wouldn't of done what he did. He didn't enjoy torturing, let alone raping, anybody. He would rather just keep to himself all the time, but unfortunately for him, Voldemort had gotten the idea and thanks to his dad, he was involved…again.

After dinner, Draco decided to head up to his room and send an owl to his dad letting him know he did what he was supposed to do and now all he had to do was keep scaring her. He sent his owl away and sat on his bed with a book, soon to fall asleep after a long day of classes.

***

Draco got a letter back from his father the next morning telling him to keep it up and the Dark Lord was pleased. After that, everything went smoothly for him. The next three weeks went by quickly for him. He did his homework, attended classes, and participated in quidditch practice. In his spare time, he bothered Hermione, who seemed to be getting more scared of him as time went by.

For Hermione, the three weeks went by extremely slow. On top of Draco scaring her all the time, she had to deal with more classes than any other student, and Ron who was breathing down her neck 24/7. The worst part about Ron always being around her was the fact that she felt obligated to tell him and Harry about what had happened to her, but she wasn't stupid. She knew that if she told on Draco, he would live up to his word and kill her. Well, she didn't actually believe that Draco would kill her, she had a feeling that he wasn't that cruel, but she knew that he would leave it up to somebody else, who wouldn't think twice about taking her out.

Because she wanted to tell her friends and couldn't, she tried her hardest to avoid them. In classes, she didn't partner up with Ron and insisted that he go with Harry, or at dinner she wouldn't eat and stayed in her room all night, saying she had to much homework to do. Harry and Ron almost thought that she was mad at them, but they couldn't figure out why, which raised some questions and some worried looks.

And for the cherry on top, she had a new fear, one that she was dreading more then anything. On their last trip to Hogsmeade, Hermione had decided to check her theory. She walked into the only drug store in Hogsmeade and bought herself a muggle pregnancy test. Over the past three weeks, she had missed her period, got morning sickness _twice_, and noticed that her breast were becoming larger. When she got back up to her room, she walked into the bathroom and locked the door behind her, dreading what was to come.

After taking the test, she waited about ten minutes then bit her lip and picked up the test from the sink. Her heart sank when she saw the stupid little pink plus sign, and then it sank even farther when she realized that she would have to break the news to Draco, and quickly before anything started happening to her that would cause everybody to notice.

* * *

_Okay, i realize that this is an awful chapter and really short. I appoligize, but i promise that good and longer ones are to come. Please stick with me and don't give up guys, this is going to be a really really really good story. I promise!_

_please review! 3_


	4. four: damn it

Hermione woke up the next morning to a splitting headache and a growling stomach. She through her legs out of her bed and walked over towards the bathroom, stretching her arms as she went. She grabbed her tooth brush and brushed her pearly whites, looking around the room. When her eyes hit the trash can and saw the stupid test looking up at her, that's when she remembered what she had to do today. She spit out the toothpaste in her mouth and walked back into her room, putting on a pair of jeans and a white tank top, putting a red sweater over top of that to keep her warm. She walked back into the bathroom and grabbed the test out of the trash, putting it deeply into her back pocket. She put her sneakers on and poked her head out the door, wanting to avoid any contact with Harry or Ron. It was a Saturday around ten in the morning, so she hoped they would be at quidditch practice or in the great hall eating a late breakfast.

Hermione, even though she was starving, couldn't eat right now. She had to find Draco and tell him, only hoping that he wouldn't kill her for it. She figured since it was obviously not her fault, that she could win the argument. She exited the Gryffindor common room and took the hallways and stairways that nobody went on, hoping to avoid running into anybody she knew. With her luck, she made it down to the first floor and poked her head into the great hall, looking right over at the Slytherin table. To her dismay, Draco wasn't there. She leaned against the wall and bit her lip, thinking about where she could look to find him. She started to walk towards the dungeons, figuring he might be in his common room. She didn't know where the Slytherin common room was, but she knew it was in the dungeon and that was a start.

She walked down every creepy hallway for about ten minutes, finally deciding to give up when she heard somebody call her name. "Granger! What the bloody hell are you doing in the dungeons?" She turned around and saw Draco walking towards her with a smirk on his face. The fear she had for him took over and she backed against the wall, hoping he wouldn't come any closer. He stopped about two feet in front of her and smirked at her, looking both ways to make sure nobody else was in the hallways. "Why are you all… alone?" He asked.

She bit her lip. "I was looking for you." She said softly.

Draco laughed. "Yeah, right." He said taking a step closer and running his hand through her hair again. "Why would you be looking for me?" He said looking at her hair as he played with it. He suddenly looked into Hermione's brown chocolate eyes and his smirk grew larger, causing Hermione's breathing to go uneven and her heart race. "Ready for round two?" He asked, taking another step closer to her, his whole body now pressed up against hers.

She closed her eyes and took a deep breath, trying to get back as much bravery as she could. "No, we need to talk." She said, sounding calm. He opened his mouth to say something, but stopped when he heard footsteps coming down the hallway. He took a step back from Hermione and opened up the empty classroom door that they were standing next to and ushered her to come in quickly. She walked inside and sat down on one of the desk, feeling her heart race against her chest, preparing herself for his reaction. He walked over to her and stood next to her, folding his arms across his chest impatiently. She looked up into his eyes and bit her lip. "You're not going to like what I have to say." She said.

"Just come on, mudblood! I have better things to do then to chat with the likes of you." He said this like he didn't care, but really he got nervous at the way she was saying these things to him.

"Well…" Hermione exhaled a breath, trying to figure out how to come out with it.

"Come on Granger!" He screamed, sending chills down Hermione's spine from the anger in his voice. She looked around the room and bit the side of her lip. She was terrified to tell him now, especially since he was angry. "Granger, I swear if you don't just-"

"I'm pregnant." She said, cutting him off and licking her lips.

His mouth opened and the anger on his face seemed to turn into turmoil. "What?" He asked speechless.

"I'm pregnant." She said again, only this time quietly, not wanting to believe the words that were coming from her own mouth.

Draco laughed. "You're funny." He said laughing even harder. "Thought that you'd pull a joke on me, payback, for what I did to you?" Hermione shook her head no as he said this. "Well guess what? I'm not falling for it." He said putting his hands in his pockets and looking up at the ceiling, hoping it really was a joke.

Hermione stood up and pulled the pregnancy test out of her back pocket. "This isn't a joke. I wish it was, but it's not." She said seriously, handing him the test. He took it slowly in his hands and looked at it, then looked at her for a quick second, letting his eyes wander back to the test. He shook his head, still unsure.

"Seriously, Granger, you better not be lying to me, because I swear I'll-"

"I'm not lying." She said cutting him off again. "I got some symptoms, so I bought that." She pointed at test. "Turns out I was right." She said, not taking her eyes off the test.

"What kind of symptoms?" Draco asked, eyes still examining the test.

"Oh…well…I missed my period and I've gotten morning sickness a couple of…" She stopped talking halfway through her sentence, mouth still wide open. Draco looked up from the test and stared at her, wondering what she was doing.

Hermione through her hand over her mouth and ran over to the nearest trash can she could find, lowering her head and barfing up whatever she had left in her stomach, which wasn't much. Draco walked over and stood behind her, watching her puke. He shook his head and put his hand on his forehead. "Damn it!" He cursed through his teeth.

***

After Hermione getting sick, they both sat down on some chairs, Draco's mind was trying to figure out what to do, while Hermione just sat still, waiting for him to answer. "Malfoy…" Hermione said impatiently. He shot her a look and she bit her lip, looking down at the ground, deciding it was best to keep her mouth shut.

"Okay," He said standing up. "Here's what were going to do." Hermione stood up with him, cracking her fingers nervously. "You're going to keep your little trap shut. Nobody's going to find out about this."

"But-"

"I said no!" He yelled walking closer to her and grabbing her wrist, becoming very frustrated and confused. He obviously had grabbed her to hard because she squealed in pain. "This is just a temporary plan until I can figure this all out. I need more time." He said throwing her wrist down and turning his back on her, thinking again.

"What if you can't think of anything in time?" She asked as he spun back around to face her, causing her to jump back. "What if somebody ask?"

He smirked at her. "You won't get big that fast, Granger. I'll have a plan before you know it." She bit her lip and looked around the room nervously. "What?" He asked.

"You're not actually going to make me go through with this, are you?" She asked. Draco laughed slightly and then turned to walk out of the room, stopping and turning around to blow her a kiss before he left.

He didn't answer her question. He couldn't, at least not yet. He didn't even know the answer himself. Things were not going according to plan and he was afraid of what his father would say. Or worse, what the Dark Lord would say. He stormed down the hallway and headed straight for his common room. He ran up to his room, pushing Pansy out of the way as she tried to give him a hug, and grabbed an empty piece of parchment.

_We need to talk. Something went wrong._

_Draco_

This was all he wrote on the note before he attached it to his owl and sent it away to his father. He sat on the bed impatiently, trying to keep his mind off of the fact that he had gotten Hermione pregnant.

After what seemed like hours, his owl came back, tapping on the window. He let the bird in and practically ripped the piece of parchment from its legs. He opened the note with shaky hands.

_The Three Broomsticks. One hour. _

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_its all starting to unwind now and get better, so keep reading! i should have another chapter up by tomorrow._

_read and review. i'm all ears!_


	5. five: forgiven mistakes

Draco put his black cloak on and straightened up his hair in the mirror. He patted down his robes and made sure there wasn't one wrinkle. If he was going to have an important meeting with his father, he had to look presentable. After checking himself in the mirror a couple more time, he decided he looked good enough and walked out of his room and down the stairs to the Slytherin Common room. He spotted all of his friends sitting at the corner desk, studying, and quickly turned his head away, hoping they wouldn't spot him leaving. Right before he reached the door, he heard a squeal. "Dracy! Where are you going?" He rolled his eyes and turned to face Pansy, who was now running at him. When she reached him she wrapped her arms around his neck and gave him a kiss on the cheek. "You never hang out with me anymore." She whined.

Draco found this extremely annoying, and knew he had to get rid of her so he wouldn't be late to see his father. "Look, Pansy, I got to go." He said, grabbing her wrist lightly and taking them off of his neck. She frowned and looked like she was going to cry. Draco rolled his eyes, not believing he ever got involved with such an annoying prick. Not caring what she thought, he turned around and quickly walked out of the common room before she could say anything else.

Once he was safe from Pansy's grip, he walked down a couple more hallways and then found the suit of armor he was looking for. He stepped in front of it, checking the hallway to make sure nobody was watching him or just passing by, and then he twisted the right hand on the knight 360 degrees. The wall behind the knight slowly opened to reveal a small dark passage. "Lumos" Draco said, lighting the tip of his wand and stepping into the dark passage way.

He walked the passage way he had walked several times before, his mind racing with thought about what his father would say. He would most likely disown him for being so stupid as to not use any protection or even a spell. What could he say? His nerves and hormones got the best of him. Now he would have to deliver this information to his father about how he was going to have a grandchild from a muggleborn. Draco's heart raced when he thought of how much this would piss of his father. But this could come as a good thing as well. His father would probably be so furious with him, he would want Hermione to get rid of the baby before anybody ever found out about it and the stupid mistake that his stupid son had made, which Draco had no problem with. Everything would go back to normal.

But there was also another possibility that Draco had thought about when he first found out Hermione was pregnant. His father could be glad that this happened. As strange as that sounds, he could see it as a new opportunity to torture Weasley and Potter even more. If they knew their precious little innocent Hermione was pregnant by Draco, they would flip out and never talk to her again, especially if they thought that she actually slept with him and he didn't rape her.

Another possibility, the one Draco feared the most, was that his father wouldn't know what to do and would have to seek help somewhere else, like the Dark Lord. Draco got a chill up his spine when he thought about what the Dark Lord would do to him for his mistake.

Draco took a deep breath when he saw a small light at the end of the tunnel and he walked towards it quickly. "Nox." He said putting out the light in his wand. He stepped out of a small hole barely big enough for him to even fit though, and walked down a dirt path that led towards Hogsmeade. When he reached the outskirts of town, he put his hood over his head, hoping nobody would recognize him as somebody who should be in school. He checked the time as he entered the pub and noticed he still had about ten minutes till his dad showed. He ordered a butterbeer and drank it nervously, still trying to figure out how he was going to break the news to his father.

"Hello, son." Draco looked up at his father, coming out of his trance. His dad took a seat across from him and the waitress returned to take his father's drink, a fire whisky. "So," Lucius said taking his first sip of his whisky. "What happened?" He said getting straight to the point.

Draco exhaled a deep breath and then licked the butterbeer off his lips, looking up into his father's grey eyes that reminded him so much of his. "Uh…" Draco said, still lost for words. His father looked at him impatiently, taking another sip. Draco took a quick glance around the room to make sure that nobody was watching them, and then turned back to his father. He leaned in closer to his dad so he could say it quieter. "She's pregnant." He said softly, hoping nobody could hear them.

"What?" Lucius said, mouth now open, making sure he had heard his son right.

Draco bit his lip again and looked around the room; some people close to them were now looking at them, wondering why Lucius had gotten so loud. "I got her pregnant." Draco said sitting back in his chair and folding his arms against his chest, looking everywhere except his father. Lucius sat back like his son and rubbed the back of his neck with his hand, closing his eyes like he had a severe migraine, which he probably did have. To Draco's surprise, Lucius started to suddenly laugh. Draco raised an eyebrow and looked at his father like he was crazy. "Why are you laughing?" He asked, trying to respect his father but finding it hard since his father was pissing him off.

"You're in deep shit." Lucius said laughing a little louder now.

Draco rolled his eyes. "I know that." He said, frustration now in his tone of voice. Lucius noticed this and stopped laughing, looking at his son. "I need your help. I don't know what to do." Draco admitted, ashamed.

"I don't either. And I certainly don't want to mess anything up anymore then you already have." Lucius stood up and grabbed some galleons out of his pocket, placing them on the table to pay for their drinks.

"Where are you going?" Draco asked. Lucius smirked at him and ushered Draco to follow him. They walked outside and Lucius grabbed Draco by the shoulder. With a pop they had apparated into the front lawn of the Malfoy Manor. "Why are we home?" Draco was truly confused.

"Because," Lucius said walking into the front door, Draco following close behind. "You, my son, are going to have to tell the one person who matters, the one person who gave you this job in the first place." Draco stopped suddenly, now aware of what was going on.

He stood there, mouth open and shaking his head. "I-I can't see _him_. Do you know what he'll do to me when he finds out I got a mudblood knocked up just because I forgot to use a spell or protection?" Lucius nodded at his son. Draco closed his eyes and inhaled a deep breath, then followed his father up the stairs. Even though he dreaded going to see the Dark Lord and he dreaded what he would do to him, he knew that he had to do this. If he or his father made the choice on their own about what to do in this situation and he wasn't pleased, he would most likely kill them.

Draco followed his father and they stopped in front of the door to the library. Lucius turned to his son and put his hand on his shoulder, telling him with his eyes that it was going to be okay, even though he knew it wouldn't be. Draco inhaled another deep breath as Lucius knocked on the door. "Enter." Draco heard Voldemort speak. Draco grabbed the door handle, trying to get himself together as he did, knowing that the Dark Lord would be able to sense if he was scared. Draco entered the room and walked in front of the seat that Voldemort was sitting in. He bowed at him, and stayed bent until Voldemort told him to rise. The Dark Lord grinned at Draco when they made eye contact. "Draco." He said, giving Draco the sudden chills. "I heard you completed the first part of your task with success. Good job." It wasn't very often that the Dark Lord complimented anybody, so Draco was quiet pleased with himself, but knew that in mere minutes he would be taking all he said back.

"Thank you, My Lord." Draco said.

"Why then, boy, have you come to see me?"

Draco bit his lip and tried to steady his breathing quickly before Voldemort lost his patience. "My Lord, I am afraid to tell you that the task you assigned me didn't exactly go as planned." Draco said, Voldemort now leaning in closer towards him, edging him to go on. "Thanks to my doing, Granger is now pregnant." He said quietly, ashamed. Most of the death eaters around Voldemort shook their heads or gasped, not wanting it to be any truer then Draco did.

Voldemort, however, didn't seem mad or frustrated. Instead he looked at Draco with a straight face, almost emotionless, but Draco could tell his dials were turning in his head as he thought up a plan. "And what have you instructed the girl to do?"

"I told her to keep quiet, My Lord."

Voldemort nodded and looked up at the ceiling, still deep in thought. Everybody was now watching him, waiting for his rage to come, a reaction that never would come. Voldemort turned towards Draco with an evil smirk growing bigger and bigger on his face by every passing second. "You're in luck, boy. This… mistake of yours could in fact turn out to be a good thing for us." Voldemort now leaned back in his chair again, confident his plan would succeed. "With this mudblood pregnant, Potter and the blood traitor will surly fall apart even faster." He said to the whole group, and then turned back to Draco. "You, Draco, are going to follow my plan exactly."

Draco nodded. "Yes, my lord." He was happy that he wouldn't be getting cursed or killed tonight. If the Dark Lord was going to do it, he would have done it already. And by the way that Voldemort was looking at Draco, he had a feeling he wouldn't mind this plan so much.

Voldemort smiled. "This mudblood will give birth to your child." Draco heart raced at the thought of Hermione carrying his child in her stomach. Suddenly, he didn't like the plan anymore. "When you go up to the castle you will tell her that she is having this child. Use force if you have to. Once everybody, including Potter and Weasley notices that she's carrying a child that belongs to you, they will eventually refuse to speak to her, especially after they find out that she slept with you…that everything was her idea." Draco's cheeks turned a bright pink at the thought of Hermione controlling him in bed. "Eventually, she'll have nobody to talk to or comfort her, which is when you will play a major part in this, Draco. When she's vulnerable, you'll pretend to fall in love with her and make her fall in love with you. When it comes time to break her and her bond with the _great_ Harry Potter, it'll be only too easy." Voldemort finished, smiling to himself, proud of his plan. "Do you understand?"Draco nodded, wishing he had never gotten involved in the first place. Voldemort turned towards Lucius. "Your son is to give you an update every week so that'll way we can keep up with what's going on."

Lucius nodded and Voldemort excused them both from his presence. Once they left the room, Lucius apparted them back to the hole that Draco had to use to get back inside of Hogwarts. "Did you understand?" Lucius asked his son. Draco nodded, at a loss for words. "Good. Send me an owl this time next week with an update just like The Dark Lord asked." Draco nodded again and Lucius disappeared into the cold fall night.

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okay so now that the plot if finally out there, the story is going to start to get good and intense. i hope you liked it and keep reading!

reviews are nice too, especially since i'm all ears when it comes to them. have a question? a comment? an idea for later on in the story? let me know, please!


	6. six: dealing with it

Hermione woke up the next morning, then consistent headache she had for the past two days now, hadn't gone away yet. She stood up out of her bed and walked over towards the window to look out into the cold Sunday sun. She put her hair behind her ears and sat down on the window sill, her eyes seemed to be hooked to the beauty of the bare trees of the forbidden forest.

As she watched them, her hands seemed to travel to her stomach, a stomach that would soon show the evidence of a child, his child. And that's when she thought about what Draco would do. He certainly wouldn't expect her to keep it. Everybody would know that he and her… no, he wasn't that stupid. The obvious choice would be for her to get rid of it before everybody saw. Not to mention the fact the Voldemort would probably have Draco killed or torture him for getting her pregnant.

But the obvious choice was the one she didn't like. Hermione never agreed with the idea of getting rid of a child just because you made a mistake or couldn't take care of it. She did however, agree with it if the situation called for it, and this certainly did.

She was raped. This child was forced upon her, and for her to keep it would be wrong. Besides, if the child grew up, it certainly wouldn't know its father. Hermione guessed that Draco would want nothing to do with it, so Hermione would turn out to be like the single moms she always used to feel bad for.

Yes, she was going to get rid of it, and she had a feeling that Draco would agree with her.

She heard a knock on her door and got up to answer it. She opened the door and saw Ginny standing before her. Hermione forced a smile and Ginny smiled back. "Hey, Ginny." Hermione said quietly trying to hide how stressed she was, but Ginny could see right through her.

"Are you okay, Hermione?" Ginny asked, concerned.

"Yeah. I, uh… didn't sleep last night."

Ginny looked at her, not believing what she was saying, but dropped the subject anyway. "Want to go get some breakfast? Harry and Ron are still asleep and I don't feel like waiting for them." She said, smiling. Hermione nodded, throwing a sweat shirt over her tank top and following Ginny down to the Great Hall. They sat amongst the short number of Gryffindors that actually woke up early on their days off, Ginny getting into a conversation with her friend Bella. Hermione, not knowing the girl, grabbed a plate and started to shovel food onto it.

As she took her first bite, her eyes traveled over to the Slytherin table and locked on Draco. She had expected him to be starring at her, creeping her out and scaring her even more then she already was, but instead he kept his head low to the table, spinning his spoon in circles inside of his cereal bowl, not taking a bite. He seemed to be ignoring Pansy, who was trying to talk to him, and looked like he was concentrating hard on something. She bit her lower lip and remembered her manners, looking away from Draco and back to her plate.

As she was about to take a bite from her bacon, her stomach took a sudden leap and she felt like she was going to be sick. She stood up quickly, almost knocking the bench and everybody on it off. She put her hand over her mouth and ran out of the great hall to the nearest bathroom. She could feel everybody's eyes locked onto the back of her head as she made her weird exit.

She found the nearest bathroom and pushed the door open, letting it slam into the wall. As she ran into the first stall, she noticed that luckly, she was the only one in the room. She bent low over the toilet seat and allowed her delicious breakfast she had just eaten come back up. She moaned and held her stomach, sitting down on the bathroom floor once she was sure there was nothing left in her stomach to come back up. "Stupid morning sickness." She complained, leaning against the walls of the stall, and closed her eyes, letting tears fall down her cheeks. Why her? What did she ever do to deserve this?

"That was some show." She heard somebody say, and recognized the voice immediately. She kept her eyes closed, biting her lips together and shaking her head slowly. She heard him lock the bathroom door and then her stall door open. "Are you okay?" He asked.

She opened her eyes and looked up at Draco with pure hatred. "What do you care?" She shot.

"I care because I'm the reason you're like that."

"Well I won't be for very long." She said standing up and closing the lid on the toilet seat so she could sit down.

"What's the supposed to mean?"

She looked at Draco, hoping he would agree with her. "Obviously, I'm not going to go through with this. I don't agree with it, but I don't really think we have a choice." Draco laughed at her seriousness. "What are you laughing at?" She asked getting pissed.

"You're going through with it."

She was speechless. She looked up at him with a shocked expression on her face. "W-What?"

He kneeled down on one foot in front of her and smiled at her, getting extremely close to her face. "I said that you're going through with it."

"But… but why?" Hermione said extremely confused on why he wanted her to go through with it. It didn't make any sense to her.

"Because I said so." Draco said standing up. He hadn't really thought of an excuse to tell her, and now that the time had come, he nerves were getting the best of him… again.

"I'm not going to do this, Malfoy." Hermione said standing up defensively.

He laughed to himself, amused. "Yes you are. And as long as my child is there, you're going to do everything I tell you to do." He pointed at her stomach.

"No, I'm not." Hermione said crossing her arms, finally deciding that she wasn't going to take anymore of Draco's crap.

He took a step closer to her and got into her face. Hermione gulped, her breathing becoming uneven. "What did you just say to me?" Draco said pissed she wasn't listening to him.

Hermione took a step back, bumping into the toilet. "This is your fault. I'm not going to suffer because of a mistake that you made. You never should have raped me in the first place!" Hermione yelled, not even noticing how loud she was becoming and realizing that people could hear what she was saying. Draco through his hand over her mouth, causing her lose her balance. As she fell back, trying to catch herself, and ended up landing right back down on the toilet seat. Draco still had his hand over her mouth, and smiled, amused with how she had fallen at his simple touch. She pushed his hand away. "Don't touch me." She said quietly, looking down at the ground.

Draco laughed. "Did we get a sudden string of bravery, Granger?" He said moving closer to her. She opened her mouth to say something, but stopped and watched as he sat down on the toilet seat backwards, grabbing her legs and putting them over his. She wanted to push him away, to stand up and run, but she couldn't seem to take her brown eyes off of his silver ones. He smirked at her, putting his hand on her cheek and massaging it with his thumb. She licked her lips and bit her lower lip nervously. "Scared yet?"She turned her head away from his hand and looked down at the ground. Draco laughed. "I'll take that as a yes."

Hermione turned back to him, tears now in her eyes. "Please don't make me do this." She begged as a tear fell down her cheek.

His smirk faded. He almost felt bad for the girl, but he couldn't let her know that. He whipped away her tear with his thumb. "Sorry sweat cheeks." He said quietly, looking into her teary eyes. "I maybe a jerk but I'm not a murderer."

"What am I supposed to tell everybody? They're going to notice that I'm gaining a huge amount of weight and eventually, they'll figure it out. What am I supposed to tell them then?" She said still crying.

"Tell them the obvious thing."

"What that you raped me?" She said through clenched teeth.

Draco looked up and exhaled a deep breath. "No!" He yelled, making her jump and shiver with fright. "Tell them that you shagged me." He said, leaning in close to Hermione so he could say it lightly. She shook her head disapproving. "What, don't like my plan?"

"It's not a plan, it's a lie." She looked away, again. "They're all going to hate me." She said so quietly that Draco could barely make out what she was saying.

"You'll live." He said standing up and walking out of the stall.

"And what if I don't?" She said standing up and following him.

"Then I guess you'll have me." He said turning towards her and smiling in her depressed face. "Actually I think it would be best if we both go along with that, and make it so they can believe us."

"How would we do that?"

He smiled at her, getting down on one knee and holding out his hand like he was proposing to her. "Hermione Granger, will you be my girlfriend?"

She opened her mouth in shock at what he was suggesting. "No! I'm not going to walk around the school telling everybody that me and you are a… thing. Besides, what would your friends think?"

"I'll just tell them I'm in it for the shag." He said crossing his arms and smilling at her.

"I have a boyfriend. I have Ron. I can't tell him that me and you are going out. It'll break his heart."

Draco laughed."Yes, you will. Besides you'll break his heart when you tell him that you're pregnant with my child, anyway. What's the difference?"

"I'll tell him I'm sorry and that I made a mistake. He'll forgive me, I know he will." Hermione said, determined to get her point across. Draco, noticing that she was probably right, needed to do something quick before all of his plans went to the dump.

He grabbed Hermione by her shoulders and pushed her against the wall, pressing his body against hers. Her breathing became uneven again and she had started to cry. He knew he scared her, but he didn't care. He had to get his point across. "I already told you, no." He said through clenched teeth. "I also told you that as long as my child is in here," He put his hand over her stomach. "That you're going to do whatever I say. Are we clear?" She nodded, more scared of him then the night he raped her. He smiled. "Good." He put his hands on the side of her cheeks and gave her a long, hard kiss on the lips. He stepped away from her and turned to walk out the door. "I'll be watching you. Don't mess up, sweet cheeks." He opened the door and walked out, leaving Hermione to sink to the floor. With her legs against her chest, she lowered her face to her knees and cried harder than she ever thought possible.

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_If you read, then review! Simple as that. I take any kind of criticism. Ideas... I love them too!_


	7. seven: understanding

Hermione went back to her room, locking the door behind her as she went. She didn't want to see anybody. She was a wreck. She was a wreck and she was pregnant. She was pregnant with a baby she didn't want, and a baby she wasn't allowed to get rid of. She was stressed, scared, frustrated, and emotional. She was on the verge of going crazy.

No, she _was_ going crazy. She felt like she had no control over her life. She was a puppet and Draco was the puppet master. He controlled her life and everything she did, all because she was too scared to do anything about it. Draco was killing her, from the inside out. He was forcing her to do things that she didn't want to do, like call him her boyfriend and carry his baby in her stomach. She would have to look at that baby every day, and the only thing she would be able to think about was _him_. He was the worst thing that ever happened to her. To her, Draco was like what Voldemort was to Harry.

Harry kept the evidence on his forehead while she carried it under her shirt. The only difference was, he became a hero for it. The boy who lived. Hermione, would be thrown in exile, the only person to turn to was the one person she hated the most. She would be a traitor in everybody else's eyes. And if she wasn't a traitor, if they knew the truth about what really happened to her that night, she would be a coward.

The brightest and one of the strongest witches of her age, and she couldn't even stand up to _him_ to tell _him_ no. To tell _him_ to stop running her life. The girl who fell. She had fallen down, too weak to get back up. She was too weak to fight back and because of that, she was in this situation she was in now. It wasn't his fault, it was hers.

She walked over towards her window and opened it, standing up on the ledge and looking down at the ground. She could jump, it would be painless. Her hell would be over. The seven story drop would instantly kill her. It would kill her. She put her hands on her stomach and closed her eyes. It would kill her baby, her unborn child. Hermione opened her mouth, letting the sobs and deep breathes come pouring out even faster into the January morning.

She stepped down off the ledge, grabbing her wand with her shaking hands. She murmured out a spell, a spell that locked the window. It was a spell that she didn't know the counter for. She ran her hand through her hair as tears poured out and she realized what she had just thought about. She had just wanted to kill herself. She never thought in a million years she would ever have a suicidal thought. It was almost an attempt, a success.

She found her way to the bathroom. Her vision was becoming blurry and she could feel faint. She walked over to the shower, knocking her mirror that hung on her wall over. She heard the glass shatter, but she didn't care. She turned the water on until it was hot and she climbed in, still fully clothed. She let the hot water hit her as she laid under it, curled up in a ball in the corner of the tub. The water hit her face, making her feel alive again and making her feel like she was okay. It also hit her body, and as she watched the water run down into the drain, she felt like all of her problems were being washed away with it.

She started to cry. She cried because she felt like everything was okay. She felt like her broken, scared, and uncontrolled body was finally under her control. She cried because she also knew she was losing it. She felt like she was sitting on the edge of the tub, looking down at her pathetic self. She was losing it, and although she knew she was, she couldn't do anything about it. She breathed in the steam and rested her head against the wall, letting more tears fall down her cheeks.

She heard her locked bedroom door blast open, but she didn't move, she couldn't. "Hermione!" She could hear them looking for her, and she couldn't yell out. She was dead on the outside, and inside she was screaming. The bathroom door opened, and her eyes slowly traveled over to a black haired and a red haired boy. Harry approached her cautiously. "Hermione?" He asked quietly. He had a worried look on his face, not knowing what could possibly be wrong with her. "Hermione, are you okay?"

Hermione didn't answer, instead she looked at Ron, who looked just, or even more worried than Harry did. She smiled at him, then she closed her eyes and felt her head fall over onto her shoulder. "Hermione!" She heard Ron yell, but she didn't yell back, or open her eyes. She laid there, knowing she was safe with them beside her. "Oh my god, Harry, we have to get her to the hospital wing!" She felt two sets of hands grab her and lift her out of the tub.

Then, she blacked out.

***

She woke up in the hospital wing. Harry was pacing the floor in front of her bed, not yet noticing that she was awake. Ron was sitting on the chair next to her bed. His head was tilted up towards the ceiling, and Hermione could tell he was asleep. She smiled at her friends, suddenly remembering what had happened to her and that they were the ones to save her. They were her best friends, and they would be through thick and thin, through her good times and her bad, through her obstacles, and through her life. They would understand, and she had to tell them.

She reached her hand out and touched Ron's slowly. He suddenly shot up, eyes connecting with hers. "Hermione!" He yelled, standing up and wrapping his arms around her, giving her a kiss on the forehead. Hermione welcomed his embrace. Harry, finally noticing she was awake, walked over and sat on the edge of her bed, smiling at her and holding her hand tightly in his. Ron released his hug and sat on the opposite side of the bed as Harry, holding her other hand. She smiled at her two best friends. They would understand.

"Hermione, we were so worried." Harry said.

She looked at him and smiled. "What happened?" Ron asked.

_I went crazy. I tried to commit suicide. I tried to kill my baby. I tried to kill Draco's baby. I tried to stop this hell from continuing. I tried to stop hell from continuing, without even realizing that it would just mean even more hell for you guy. _

She didn't say wanted to say it, she wanted to tell them. She wanted to believe that they would understand. "I got sick during breakfast. I think it was the food." She lied. "When I didn't feel too well after, I came up to my room. The sound of the water running makes me feel better, so I climbed in with my clothes on so I could feel better faster." The lie came to her so easily, like it was true, and she hated it.

"You broke your mirror." Harry stated.

"I knocked it over. I'm sorry if I scared you guys." She smiled at them and they smiled back.

"Were just happy you're okay." Ron said, kissing her hand. She couldn't tell them. They wouldn't understand.

***

She woke up the next morning to the sun shining in her eyes. She got dressed quickly, noticing she was going to be late for potions. She through on her school robes and ran out the door, not bothering to fix her hair. She met up with Ron and Harry in the common room and they left together, all running down to make it to class in time. The bell rang when they were halfway down, and they decided that there was no need to run since they were already late. They walked through the door and then entire class looked at them. Snape, glared at them, tapping his foot as they found a seat.

"Late." He said. All three of them looked at him, waiting for him to assign them a detention. "I just finished prepping everybody for the potion they're going to make today, and you missed it. Luckly for you, I haven't assigned partners. Since you will need to know what to do, I'll have to assign you a partner who already knows what they're doing." Hermione took offence to this; almost positive she would know what to do if she was told the potion. "Potter you can go sit with Ms. Parkinson. Weasley, take a seat next to Ms. Davis, and Granger…" Snape looked around the room, trying to find somebody to partner her up with. "Ah, Mr. Malfoy. Now class…"

Hermione groaned, taking a seat next to a smirking Draco. She looked at him and then turned to attention to what Snape was saying, taking down notes. "You're quiet today." He whispered to Hermione. She ignored him, hoping that maybe he would leave her alone if she did. "What's the matter sweet pea?" He asked, putting his hand on her thigh. Her heart raced and she looked at him. He laughed.

She looked down at his hand, too afraid to move it. "Get your filthy hand off me." She whispered through clenched teeth, turning back to the board. "And I'm not your _sweet pea_."

He laughed to himself and removed his hand, but he didn't stop bothering her. "I heard about your little… episode."

She turned to him, shocked that he actually knew about that. "How do you-"

"I told you I was watching." Hermione got the sudden chills, creeped out that he knew that much about her. She thought that Harry and Ron were the only ones who knew. Now that Draco knew, the whole school would soon know. "I didn't know freaking out was part of pregnancy." He said in a low whisper so nobody else could hear.

Hermione looked around the room, worried that somebody had heard what he said. "Can you not say that word…please." Hermione said gathering all the supplies on the table in the order they were going to have to use them, to start making the potion.

Draco snickered. "You haven't told them yet, have you?" He asked, looking back at Ron and Harry. She shook her head and he laughed. "Are you planning on it anytime soon? This time next week you're going to start to 'gain weight', as you called it."

"I know."

"Oh, so you're just going to wait for them to find out on their own? I'm sure they'll love that."

"I'm going to tell them." She shot him a look. "I just haven't figured out when or how."

"Have you figured out _how_ and _when_ to tell them that you're going out with me now?" Draco said, now messing with the ingredients on his desk so it looked like he was doing something.

Hermione froze, realizing that he was right. On top of her delivering the information about her carrying Draco's child, she would have to tell them that she and Draco were going out. She shook her head and then turned to Draco. "You have no idea." She said, tears coming to her eyes. Draco looked at her, taken back. "You have no idea what I'm going through. You couldn't possibly understand. You get to walk around the school like nothing is wrong and I'll have to walk around with evidence under my shirt. You get to say that you're just in for the sex, and all of your friends will get a good laugh about it. They'll laugh about the fact that you're using me. They'll laugh at me, not you. Meanwhile, I have to tell, no, I have to _lie_ to the people that I love and tell them something that I wish wasn't true. You have no idea what I'm going through right now."

Draco bit his lip and looked down at the ground. "I had a suicidal thought yesterday." He looked at her when she said this. "I wanted to jump out of my window and kill myself. I wanted to kill myself so I could be out of this hell that you put me into. You want to know what stopped me? I stopped because I remembered that I had a child inside of my stomach. _Your_ child." She laughed slightly as a tear fell down her cheek. "Ironic that the reason I wanted to kill myself was because of you, and the reason I didn't was because of you. I am in pain, Malfoy. Emotional, mental, and physical pain. And it's because of you. You're killing me, and you have no idea. You can't even begin to understand."

Hermione pushed her chair back and walked out of the classroom. She didn't look back, even when Snape called her name. She didn't look back at Harry or Ron either. She didn't look back at the people who had their eyes glued to the back of her head. She didn't look back at them, because she knew that none of them understood.

* * *

_i am extremely proud of this chapter. i decided to stay up all night and this is what came from that. maybe i should do that more often, lol. let me know if you liked it as much as i did._

_please review! even if you already reviewed like a million times, do it again. i love seeing a new review as much as the next person!_


	8. eight: draco's words

No, she was wrong. He didn't know what she was going through, but she didn't know what he was going through either. Draco paced his room, hands behind his back and thinking. Sure, she had to have the evidence under her shirt, but he had to have the evidence on his right arm, a mark that would stay there for the rest of his life. She would be pregnant for nine months. He would have the mark on his arm for his whole life. Eighty years or more, if he even lived the long. She had to endure nine months of pregnancy, while he had to endure 960 months of remembrance. Something that he never wanted to remember.

Draco never really wanted to become what he always thought he would become when he was a child. He didn't like to kill people. It wasn't in his nature. He just had a tough shell on the outside, so he was able to hide his emotions. He never wanted to rape her, and he certainly didn't want to get her pregnant. It was forced upon him, all because of his father. His father had gotten himself in too deep with the deatheaters and Voldemort, and now Draco became involved. If he left or refused, his family would just get hurt, and he couldn't let that happen. He had to do what he had to do, even if that involved hurting some people in the way.

But it was only Granger. He shouldn't care about her feelings. She was a mudblood and Potter's friend. No, he didn't care, he couldn't. If he did, everything that was supposed to happen in this task he was assigned… would go wrong.

Then why did he care? Why did he care that he hurt her so much? Why did he care that she was pregnant and broken? Why was he asking himself these questions? Why? Because he cared. Because it was his entire fault. Because Hermione Granger was right.

***

"Hermione, what's wrong with you?" Ron asked Hermione at breakfast, two weeks after she had walked out of the potions class. 'You've been acting so strange. You haven't talked to any of us in weeks, and when you do it's only yes or no, or a smile and a nod."

Hermione looked at him and bit her lip. He was right. Ever since she left the potions classroom that day, she decided it was best to just ignore everybody. She hadn't told anybody yet, because she simply couldn't. She couldn't bring herself to break their hearts, to lie to her best friends. "I'm sorry." She said, all eyes on her now, waiting for an explanation.

"Come on, Hermione. What's wrong?" Harry urged on.

"Nothing." She said taking a bite of her toast.

"Don't lie, Hermione." Ginny said from the seat next to her. "You've been like this ever since Ron and Harry told me about your little episode in potions. Now tell us. We're your best friends, Hermione, we can help you."

Hermione shook her head. They wouldn't help her. "I'm fine guys, really."

"Your pale as a ghost, you won't talk to anybody, and you look like you gained ten pounds." Ron said. "Ouch!" He yelled as Ginny had obviously kicked him under the table for saying something so rude. Hermione just stared at Ron. He finally said something. She knew that everybody noticed she was fatter, but nobody ever said anything to her. She had been waiting, and now that it was finally said, she wished that he hadn't said anything. This just meant it was obvious now, and she would have to tell her secret.

She could feel her heart racing against her chest. She opened her mouth to say something, to say it, to finally let the truth out, let the lie out, but she closed her mouth. Tears started to come to her eyes. She couldn't' do it. She stood up quickly and ran out of the Great Hall. She ran up the main stairwell and let her feet carry her to her dormitory. She ran into her room and sat down on her bed, closing her eyes and biting her lip. She was trying to make her breathing steady, just waiting for the knock to come.

After a few minutes of deep breathing, she finally heard it. "Come in." She said softly. The door opened slowly and Ginny walked in the room, followed closely by Harry and Ron. Ginny sat down on the edge of Hermione's bed. She looked at her with a concerned look, not sure what to say. Harry and Ron stood behind her, waiting for Ginny to speak. Hermione let a tear fall down her cheek. "I'm so sorry." She said, sniffling.

Ginny shook her head sadly and scooted closer to Hermione, holding her hand. "Hermione, what's wrong?" Ginny pressed.

Hermione whipped her tears away and put her hair behind her ears. "I'm…" She took another breath of air, looking at her friends and taking in the way they were looking at her. They loved her so much. "I'm pregnant." She finally said it, and saying it didn't make her feel any better. She didn't look at them; she didn't look at any of them. Her eyes traveled to her stomach, just staring at absolutely nothing.

It went completely silent in the room. You could have heard a pin drop. "What?" Ron asked, finally breaking the silence. He took a step closer to Hermione. "How is that possible, Hermione? I didn't… we never…-"

"I know we didn't Ron." She said, letting another tear fall down her cheek, getting ready to lie, getting ready to lose her best friends. She looked up into Ron's eyes, preparing herself to see the hatred grow in his eyes. "I… I had sex with somebody else." She let the words pour out of her. She let Draco's words pour out of her.

Ron shook his head, now extremely pissed off. "Who?" He said through clenched teeth and white knuckles.

She bit her lip and closed her eyes, shaking her head. "Draco Malfoy." She kept her eyes closed the entire time, but she didn't need them to be open to see what Ron's face looked like. She heard the door slam and she felt the weight on the bed lift up from where Ginny was sitting only seconds ago. She looked at the last remaining person in the room.

Harry stood before her. He looked shocked and like he was about to cry. They didn't say anything. What could they say to each other that would make things better? Harry shook his head and looked down at the ground. He looked like he wanted to say something, but instead he took one last look at Hermione and then walked out of the room after his friends.

His friends, not hers, not anymore. She was right. She was a traitor.

They all hated her so much.

* * *

_review please!_


	9. nine: never the same

"Draco, are you okay?" Draco turned his head to see the table full of his friends all looking at him.

"Yeah, I'm fine." He answered, blowing them off and turning back to his sandwich. He really wasn't fine. He was stressed and emotional. Ever since Hermione had said what she said to him in potions, his mind was turning with thoughts. He felt terrible for what he had done and wanted nothing more to apologize. But he was a Malfoy, and Malfoy's didn't apologize for something they did wrong, especially when they were assigned to that thing by the Dark Lord himself. No, he couldn't even feel sorry for her. It was against the Malfoy name.

And besides, he shouldn't feel bad for her anyway. She was Granger. She was a mudblood and one of Potter's best friends. He hated her… right?

_Yes. I hate her. That's why I did what I did. I didn't do it because the dark lord told me to. I did it because I wanted to. Yes, that's it._

As thought this to himself, he couldn't help but wonder if that was actually true. Did he really actually hate her?

He found himself looking over at the Gryffindor table. She was sitting all alone at the far end of the table, in-between the first and second years, but none of them were talking to her either. She was sitting at least 3 feet away from everybody else, eating her lunch alone and in silence. She had obviously told her friends and they had told everybody else, but lucky for them, nobody in the other houses knew about it. But still, Hermione Granger had no friends.

They all hated her, just like she said they would. She was alone and vulnerable, and Draco should of moved in days ago, but he couldn't. He didn't have the courage to even look her in the face. How was he supposed to befriend her now? He could apologize. That would certainly put him on her good side, but then she would think it would be okay to go run and tell her friends that she was pregnant because he raped her. No, apologizing was out of the question, but he had to do something.

He watched her stand up and get ready to leave. He decided that now would be a good time to approach her, although he still had no clue what he was going to say. He pushed his plate away and got up to follow her. She was heading for the library. Draco knew this before he even got up. He had been following her for a couple of days now, and she always went to the library. He couldn't blame her. She couldn't go to the Gryffindor Common Room. Nobody there respected or liked her anymore. The library was her sanctuary. It was the only place she could go to be truly alone. Alone from people and alone from wandering and rumor filled eyes.

He watched as she took a seat at one of the far back tables, pulling out her transfiguration homework and starting it. He inhaled a deep breath and walked towards her, sitting in the seat across from her. She looked up at him, probably shocked that somebody was sitting with her, but then her head turned right back to her homework. He stared at her for a couple minutes, still unsure of what to say. She looked back up at him. "What do you want, Malfoy?" She asked.

"I don't really know." He answered. It was an honest answer, he had no clue. Hermione looked at him from a side glance, proabally really confused on why he hadn't said anything smart or hurtful yet to her. "I saw you sitting all alone today. Scar face and the Weasel still not talking to you?" At least he could make fun of them still.

She glared at him, but then her face turned suddenly sad. "No." She said sadly. "They hate my guts. I'm nothing but a traitor in their eyes."

"I guess that's my fault." He said, now looking away. "_What am I saying?"_ He asked to himself.

"Yeah…" She said, looking at him oddly. "Why are you here?

He looked back at her, still unsure. "I told you I would be your friend when you didn't have any."

Hermione laughed. "I don't want your friendship, even if I don't have anybody else." She shook her head and laughed silently to herself as she continued her homework.

Draco smirked. "Yes you do." She suddenly stopped writing and looked up at Draco. "Come on, Granger. You don't seriously want to be all alone, do you? I mean, eventually the whole school is going to figure out that you're knocked up and then everybody else won't talk to you. They'll all be staring at your stomach, whispering into each other's ears as they pass by you, they'll all look at your like you're a freak, and-"

"Okay!" Hermione said yelling, cutting him off. She looked around the room, making sure nobody was watching them. "I get it. "

"I'm right, Granger, and you know it." He said smirking at her. She turned back to him and shook her head.

"I already told you I'm not being friends with you." She said turning back to her homework.

Draco's smirk faded, being replaced by a pissed off expression. "Listen, Granger, I already told you that you're going to do what I say, and if I tell you you're going to be friends with me, then you're going to be friends with me."

Hermione looked at him confused. "W-What? You do you realize what you telling me to do, right?"

"Yes, and I mean it. You're going to be my friend whether you want to be or not."

"Why would you force me to do that?"

"Because if you don't have any friends or anybody to talk to, that just means that you'll be stressed out. I may not know a lot about pregnancy, but I do know that if your stressed, it could cause harm to your child. You could have a premature birth or even a light weight baby. And no kid of mine, even if you happen to be the one to carry it, is going to have any birth complications." Draco finished, sitting back in his chair and crossing his arms. Hermione starred at him, eyes wide and mouth open. "What?" He snapped.

She let out a little laugh. "I can't believe you knew all that information?" She said, a huge smile on her face.

"Yeah, well… I did my research." He said watching Hermione as she cracked up. "Okay, Granger, it's not that funny."

"Yes, it is." She said, still cracking up. Draco suddenly found her laughing extremely contagious, and a smile came across his face, followed by a light chuckle. "See, you think it's funny, too." She said pointing at him with one hand and putting the other hand on her stomach.

It was then that he looked at Hermione. He really, truly, looked at Hermione. He looked at her chocolate eyes, her curly brown hair, her smile, and her contagious laugh that could brighten up a dark room. He stopped laughing, but kept his smile pasted on his face, and he just stared at Hermione. She must have noticed the way he was looking at her because she stopped laughing and just stared at Draco. They both looked at each other, a twinkle in their eyes. Draco opened his mouth to say something, but then somebody interrupted them.

"Why, if it isn't the cute little couple." They both turned their heads, a red haired boy stood before them.

"Ron, what are you doing here?" Hermione said standing up, shocked that he was talking to her.

"Homework." Ron said, glaring at Hermione, and then turning to Draco. "So, Malfoy, have you always had a knack for turning all the girls you talk to into whores, or is it just Hermione?"

"Ron!" Hermione yelled, shocked and hurt at what he was calling her.

Draco stood up, knocking his chair to the ground, getting right in Ron's face. "Don't call her that." He said sternly.

Hermione looked at Draco with a confused look on her face. Why was he sticking up for her? He should like the fact that Ron, the person she loves, is calling her a whore.

"Get out of my face, Malfoy!" Ron yelled, taking a step back.

Draco laughed at Ron, knowing that he was terrified of him. "Make me." Draco smirked down at Ron, who was a couple more inches shorter then Draco. Ron pulled out his wand and put the tip up to Draco's neck. Draco laughed at him. "You won't do it."

"Want to bet?"

Hermione decided to step in before Ron actually did decide to stand up for himself and curse Draco. She stepped in front of Draco, pushing Ron back and smacking his wand out of his hand. "Go away Ron!"

Ron laughed and shook his head at Hermione. "Why him? What did he do differently?"

Hermione shook her head. She couldn't answer that question without lying. She was done with lying. "I never called her a whore, for starters." Draco said, Ron now glaring at him.

"Why are you staying pregnant Hermione?" Ron asked, completely ignoring Draco's remark.

"I…" Hermione started, but she _couldn't_ continue, she _couldn't_ lie.

"She's not a killer. Hermione would never kill an innocent child just because she didn't want it. Would you, Weasel?" Draco asked.

"Can't you just stay out of our conversation for like a second? I'm trying to have a conversation with my messed up girlfriend, here!"Ron said, finally responding to Draco.

Hermione looked at Ron awkwardly. Did he really still consider her his girlfriend? "She's not your girlfriend, anymore, _Ronald_." Draco said laughing, grabbing Hermione's hand from behind. "She's mine." Hermione looked at Draco and smiled slightly. It would kill her, but she would have to thank him for standing up for her later. She looked back over at Ron, who now looked like he wanted to curse Draco to the next year, but was too terrified of him to do anything. "Come on, Hermione." Draco said, still holding her hand and pulling her towards the exit of the library.

"She's not your girlfriend, Malfoy! She's your bitch! Your whore!" Ron yelled after them. Hermione stopped suddenly, releasing her grip from Draco's hand. She stormed over to Ron, and before anybody knew what was happening, Hermione's fist came in contact with Ron's nose, sending him falling backwards and onto one of the library table.

Ron yelped in pain at the fact that Hermione had just broken his nose. "I'm nobodies whore, Ronald Weasley! And I'm certainly not your girlfriend anymore!" And with those last words she walked back over to Draco, who took her hand and they exited the library together. As they left the library, hand in hand, they both realized that their lives were never going to be the same after tonight.

* * *

_sorry that this chapter took so long to get up. i ended up having to go to the hospital for some stitches, so my mind wasn't really in the writing mood since it was concentrating on the pain. _

_but please review. it should def help get me motivated to write longer and get them updated more quickly! _


	10. ten: human in the beast

They had walked all around the school, just looking for a place to talk in privacy. Even though Hermione didn't like the idea of being all alone with Draco, she was curious as to why he had a sudden change of heart towards her. She reassured herself that she had her wand, and this time she wasn't going to let it out of her sight. Draco might be able to control her with his man power, but she could beat him easily with magic.

Draco had released her hand the second they left the library and he seemed to be walking quickly to wherever he was going. Hermione was just barely able to keep up with him, almost bumping into him when he came to a sudden stop. Hermione looked at the picture he was staring at. She didn't recognize where she was, but only because she had spent all her time concentrating on keeping up with Draco. Barnabas the Barmy stood before them in a tapestry, trying to teach trolls to dance the ballet. Hermione turned around, suddenly remembering where she was.

As she turned, a tall wooden door appeared, opening to reveal a cozy little room with a long couch sitting in front of a fire place. "The room of requirement?" Hermione asked as Draco took a step into the room. He looked at her and nodded, ushering her to follow him. She inhaled a deep breath and walked into the room after Draco. The room was far better than her Gryffindor Common Room. The walls were painted a deep purple, holding pictures of several happy wizarding families. The fireplace was lit and roaring and the couch looked almost as comfortable as it felt.

Hermione sat down at the end of the couch and stared into the fireplace. Draco had walked behind the couch and had his back to the fireplace. He seemed to be looking at the pictures that lined the room. They both didn't say anything for a few minutes, neither sure what they were even doing there.

Hermione didn't want to be the first to speak, so she decided to wait for him, even though she wanted to say what was on her mind more than anything. Hermione heard Draco exhaled a deep breath and heard his footsteps nearing the other side of the couch. She hadn't taken her eyes off the fire. "Look, Granger, I don't want you to get any ideas, okay?"

Hermione turned and looked at him as he sat down on the couch next to her. He had his elbows on his legs and his hands were resting in between his legs. He was looking down at the ground, obviously trying to avoid Hermione's eyes. "You called me Hermione." She said, crossing her legs and folding her arms over her chest. "You called me Hermione and you stood up for me." He nodded slowly, almost like admitting it hurt his ego. "Why?" She asked, now unfolding her arms and placing them on her lap.

"I just wanted to put on a good show for the Weasel." Draco said, standing up and walking over to the fireplace. He rested his arm on top of the brick that covered the fireplace and stood a few feet away from it, just staring into the flames.

Hermione shook her head. He was getting frustrated, and she could tell he was lying to her. "You're lying to me." She said softly. Draco turned towards her quickly, not like being called a liar. "Why did you stick up for me?" She asked again. Draco rolled his eyes and turned back towards the fireplace, ignoring her question. Hermione, now becoming frustrated, stood up and walked behind him. She slowly reached her hand out and placed it on his shoulder. "Draco…"

He turned around quickly and grabbed her wrist, holding it with a tight grip. "I didn't lie to you." He said, glaring into Hermione's eyes, still holding her wrist tightly.

Hermione looked down towards the ground, afraid to see something in his eyes that she didn't want to see. "Can I tell you why I think you stood up for me?" She asked.

He released her wrist, looking up at the celing and exhaling a deep breath. "Sure." He snapped.

Hermione looked up at him. "You didn't like the fact that he was calling me something I'm not. You know I'm not a whore because I didn't even have sex with you. I'm not pregnant by my choice and you know that, and deep down inside, I think that bothered you." He looked down at her, not believing that she could see through him so well, that she could see the side of him he never revealed. "I don't think you're as bad a person as you put on, Draco Malfoy. You know you've done things in your life that weren't right, like raping me, and you put on a show to make it seem like you don't care. You make it seem like you do it on purpose, to be the 'cool' kid. But deep down , you're just human."

They both stared into each other's eyes. Hermione knew she was right, and so did Draco, but he couldn't admit it. He turned his attention away from her big brown eyes, turning his back on Hermione and staring into the fireplace again. "You're wrong." He said quietly. "I stood up for you because if we are going to pretend to be a couple, then we should at least act like one. And in a relationship, a guy wouldn't let another guy call his girlfriend names." It was a lie, but it was a good lie. He turned back to Hermione, who was now sitting back on the couch with her head in her hands. He exhaled a deep breath and joined her. "What's wrong?"

"They're my best friends. They hate me though, and what I did tonight just made their hate grow even more." She had tears falling down her eyes.

"They don't hate _you_, they hate what _you did_."

"I didn't do anything." She said quietly.

"I did." He put his hand under her chin and lightly brought her head up to look at him. He wanted to apologize. He wanted to hold her in his arms and let her cry, let him be the one to comfort her. He wanted nothing more than to set things straight, but he couldn't. "This is far from over, Hermione. I'm going to be here to help you because I'm the one who did this to you. I may not like it, but I'm a Malfoy, and Malfoy's are gentlemen." He exhaled a deep breath and grabbed her hand. "And a gentlemen wouldn't let somebody fall down when they're their weakest."

Hermione smiled at him, still unsure of whether to trust him or not. But looking into his grey eyes, she saw something. She saw the truth, she saw what he really was, and she decided to put her trust in him. She saw the human within the beast.

-------------------------

Draco sat down at the Slytherin table the next morning at breakfast. He knew that after his little fiasco with Hermione and Ron yesterday, everybody would soon know that he and Hermione had something going on. He needed to tell his friends, and he needed to tell them soon. If they found out from another source, they would get the wrong information, and he would be thrown into exile along with Hermione.

As he took a bite into his toast, Blaise and Pansy sat down across from him. They both stared at him like he was from another planet. He stopped eating and looked at them. "What?" He asked, his mouth still full of food.

"Is it true?" Pansy asked, already looking like she was about to cry.

Draco rolled his eyes. _Too late, they already knew._ "Is what true?" He asked, taking another bite, trying to avoid the question.

"Don't play stupid, mate, just answer the damn question." Blaise snapped. He was obviously pissed off, and a pissed off Blaise was never a good thing, unless it was aimed at somebody else.

Draco exhaled a deep breath and put his toast down on his plate, whipping away the crumbs on his hand with a napkin. "Yes." He said. It was plain and simple. Pansy got up and ran away, which Draco expected, but Blaise just stared at Draco, not sure what to think. Draco leaned in towards him. "It's not what you think. I'm got into it for the shag, but now I'm just… involved."

"How are you involved? I mean, there are rumors going all around the school that she's knocked up. And the worst part of that rumor is that you're the one who got her knocked up. " Blaise said, barely loud enough for Draco to hear. Draco leaned back in his chair and ran his hand through his hair. He looked down at the rest of the Slytherin table. Nobody else was paying attention to them. He looked back at Blaise and nodded. Blaise's mouth dropped open and he almost fell out of his seat as he stood up. "No way."He said shaking his head and fidgeting with his fingers. He had started to pace the space he was standing in, his mind running like clockwork. "Did you tell your dad?" He asked. Blaise had a heart in a way where he always cared for his friends. He knew that by Draco getting Hermione, a mudblood, pregnant, it would only mean trouble for his friend.

"Yeah, he knows." Draco said, eating his toast again.

"You don't seem worried. How did he take it?" Blaise said, now done pacing and standing in one spot, staring at Draco. Draco laughed at the way he was over reacting. "Don't laugh! This isn't a laughing matter!" He yelled. Everybody within ear site was now looking at them. Draco looked at the watching eyes and stood up. He ushered Blaise to follow him and they walked outside into the hallway.

"You're going to make everything worse." Draco said once they found a secluded place, putting his hands in his pocket. "My dad didn't care." Blaise looked at him confused when he said this, opening his mouth to say something, but Draco cut him off, already knowing what he was thinking. "I know, my dad not carrying that I got a mudblood knocked up is…strange, but he didn't. I just told him I did it on purpose."

"You did it on purpose?"

"No." Draco said, almost offended. "I just told him that." Blaise shook his head still confused. Draco, now becoming frustrated, exhaled a deep breath and put his hand on his friends shoulder. "Just trust me, its okay. Everything is taking care of." Blaise nodded, trusting his friend. "Just keep this on the D.L. for me, okay?" As Blaise nodded, Draco's eyes wandered past his head, spotting Hermione walking out of the Great Hall. He patted his friend on his shoulder and ran after Hermione. She saw him coming and stopped walking, allowing him to catch up to her.

"Hello." She said when he was standing next to her.

"People know." He said as they started to walk again.

Hermione laughed, but stopped when Draco shot her a look. "After yesterday, did you actually expect this to be kept a secret for that much longer?"

"A little longer than this, Granger." He said quietly, his frustration showing.

"Oh, are we calling each other by our last names again, Malfoy?" She said in a regular tone. Some people who were standing in the hallways looked at them strangely. Draco rolled his eyes and grabbed Hermione by her upper arm, dragging her into a hallway and putting her back against the wall. "What are you doing?"

"This isn't a joke anymore, okay? Everybody, and I mean _everybody_, thinks were a couple. You need to start acting like one. By calling me Malfoy like that out loud, is going to raise questions." He said quietly, putting his hands on the wall over her shoulders and trapping her in.

"You called me Granger first, remember?" Hermione said trying to push away his arms so she could get out. "And can you move?"

He lowered his hands and she tried to walk away, but he grabbed her around her wrist and pulled her towards him. "I'm serious, Granger."

"You know, you're the one who needs to start to act like were a couple, _honey_. If this was a relationship, you wouldn't be grabbing me all the time and hurting me," She started, yanking her wrist from his grip. "And you would call me Hermione. If you want to make this brilliant idea of yours work, I would suggest you start acting like the gentlemen you say you are." As she said this, she turned her back on Draco and walked away with her nose in the air.

It was going to be hard to bring the human out of this beast.

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_wow. i wanted to thank everybody for all the reviews! i was shocked to see them all. thanks for the motivation!_

_i hope you liked this chapter and the rest that are soon to come. please review again! the more reviews the longer you have to wait for another chapter!_

_i also like ideas along with the constructive criticism. ideas help to get rid of writers block :)_


	11. eleven: dancing

The bell had run several minutes ago, but Draco still hadn't gone to class. He was sitting down in the Slytherin Common Room, head in his hands, and contemplating whether or not he wanted to even go to class. It was potions with the Gryffindors, which meant that everybody would be watching him and Hermione. Whether he wanted to admit it or not, he was in this as deep as Hermione was now.

Draco was no longer the popular, high strung, Slytherin. In fact, everybody besides Blaise, would stare at him with wonder and shock that he was the one to get Hermione pregnant. They probably would of said something if they weren't terrified of him.

He already couldn't stand the fact that nobody liked him and because of Hermione his love life had come to a complete halt. He figured that he could try and make the best of it with Hermione, since they seemed to only have each other now. But if he wanted to make it work with Hermione, he would have to change, which is something that he didn't normally do.

Hermione had seen inside of him. She had seen the thing that most people don't see; his nice side. He didn't like to bring that side out because of who he was, but the fact was that he liked his hidden side more than the one that everybody knew. But being a Malfoy had a way of destroying that. With his father being so close to The Dark Lord, Draco had developed a side that everybody else, besides his friends, was terrified of, and he couldn't change it.

Now that people knew him and the power his family had on the dark side, he was always being watched. One slip up and any of the other Slytherins would go running off to their parents who would report it to the Dark Lord if they were a death eater, or just another death eater. Either way, the word would be out.

Lucky for him, this whole plan was Voldemort's idea, so he and his family wouldn't get in trouble.

But Voldemort's idea was for Draco to _pretend_ to befriend and fall in love with Hermione, and Draco wasn't so sure he was doing that anymore.

For once in his life, he had looked past the blood lines and saw something amazing. He saw Hermione, a new Hermione. He didn't see her as Granger anymore. As Granger, she was nothing more than Potter's little sidekick, his brains to his operation. He now saw her as Hermione. She was beautiful, big brown eyes, bushy brown hair, amazing curves, as or maybe even more smarter than he was, and she had a big heart to hold everything in. Strangely enough, she was everything that Draco had seemed to be looking for.

But he knew that she didn't have the same feeling for him, and that almost broke his heart. But then again, he was Draco Malfoy, and Draco Malfoy could get any girl he wanted, and Hermione wasn't any exception.

He stood up from the couch, grabbing his potions book and walking out of the Slytherin Common Room. The potions classroom wasn't far away from the Slytherin Common Room, so he made it there in mere seconds. He opened the door and everybody turned towards him. "So nice for you to join us, Mr. Malfoy." Snape said, eyeing Draco down as he sat down in the unoccupied seat next to Hermione.

"Sorry Professor. I lost track of time." Draco said, not looking at Snape, getting out his books and laying them across the table.

"Yes, well you also lost ten points for Slytherin." Snape said turning back to the board.

"Come on, Malfoy!"

"What's your problem?"

He rolled his eyes at the Slytherin's who were complaining about the fact that he had just lost them well earned Slytherin points, and turned to Hermione. She smiled at him and he returned it. "What took you so long?" Hermione asked in a whisper.

"I was thinking about you." He said, smiling at her flirtingly.

Hermione's cheeks turned a deep red and she turned her attention to the page she was writing her notes on. "Are we acting like a couple now?" She said so low that Draco could barely hear her.

Draco let out a little laugh under his breath and opened his mouth to say something, but was interrupted by no other then Snape. "Mr. Malfoy! Do you have the intention of interrupting my whole class today, or just the first half hour?"

"Sorry, sir." Draco said, now watching Snape as he shook his head at Draco and turned his attention back to his class. Draco took out a piece of clean paper and grabbed his quill, scribbling what he wanted to say to Hermione on it.

**I'm sorry about earlier.**

Hermione took the paper and read it quickly. She looked at Draco and smiled.

**You never cease to surprise me.**

He read over it carefully, not really understand what she meant.

**What is that supposed to mean?**

She scribbled quickly down on the piece of paper. Draco was surprised that it didn't leave an indent on the back of the paper.

**Passing notes? I feel like I'm back in elementary school.**

Draco looked at it, confused again. He had no clue what elementary school was.

**Elementary school? Must be a muggle thing.**

Hermione smiled and laughed to herself.

**Yes, it is. **

Draco smirked. _Stupid muggles. They don't make any sense. _

**Well, I'm still sorry. I know how I acted and I'm going to try and change into the gentleman I should be towards you. **

Hermione smiled secretly and Draco knew a smart comment would be coming.

**Are you going to change into the gentleman you should be around **_**me**_** or the gentleman you should be around other **_**women**_** in general.**

Draco laughed a little too loudly. She was right, like always.

**Okay fine, you got me. I'll act like the gentleman I should be when I'm around **_**you**_**.**

Hermione nodded, taking the paper and scribbling lightly.

**Okay, fine. You're forgiven. **

Draco smirked.

**Want to join me for dinner tonight?**

Hermione read the note and then looked at him with a confused look on her face. Draco just smiled at her, nodding.

**At the Slytherin table?**

Draco laughed and shook his head.

**No. I know a place. Join me?**

She looked at Draco and smiled.

**I would love to.**

**-------------------------**

After potions, Draco and Hermione both went their separate ways, Draco promising to come and get her at 6 in the library.

Hermione went to all of her classes, somewhat excited to see what Draco had up his sleeve. He apparently knew how to charm all the girls, and Hermione couldn't wait to see him in action.

It was weird for her to be thinking this about him, especially when you put the fact that he was her rapist in front of it all, but Hermione seemed to be falling for this new Draco. He really had changed, and she guessed that because she was pregnant. Maybe that was the same reason why she was falling for him. Maybe him being thrown in the same situation she was in, had made them grow closer. Hermione knew this was a good thing for the child inside of her stomach, but she didn't know how everybody would take it.

Obviously they would think it would be wrong. A Gryffindor and a Slytherin? A muggle and a pureblood? Hermione and Draco? Nothing made sense to her anymore; especially the way she felt when she saw Draco. She seemed to get butterflies in her stomach, and her heart started to race. She didn't know if it was because she was nervous or scared around him, or if it was something much deeper and loving. Love?

No, Hermione Granger wasn't the loving type, especially with Draco Malfoy.

_It must be my stupid hormones and this unborn child making me get feelings for him. He is the dad after all. It makes perfect sense._

She reassured herself that she was correct and headed for the library around quarter of six. She sat down at the table she always sat down on and grabbed her homework out of her bag, keeping herself occupied while she waited.

She shot her head up when she heard somebody laugh. "Don't concentrate so hard, Hermione. I think I can smell you brain burning."

She smacked Draco playfully on the arm. "Shut up." She said smiling at him.

"Are you ready?" He asked holding out his hand for her to take it. She nodded and quickly packed her stuff away in her messenger bag, throwing it over her shoulder and taking Draco's hand. They walked out of the library and made their way up to the seventh floor. "I hope you like what I got."

"Where are we going?" She asked, looking up into his light grey eyes.

"I told you I knew a place." He said smiling at her, gripping her hand tighter but yet gentle.

Hermione noticed where they were instantly and smiled up at Draco. He let go of her hand and paced back and forth three times in front of a wall, opening up the same brown door that they had gone in earlier. He held out his hand and led Hermione inside. She gasped at what she saw. It was the same purple room, only this time it had grown slightly in its length. There was small table set up behind the couch with a full meal and candlelight. There was even soft romantic music playing in the background. She looked at Draco and smiled. "You never cease to surprise me."

He laughed and led her over to the table, pulling out her chair for her to sit. He then joined her on the other side of the table and they began to eat right away. It was great food, and the entire time they laughed and talked to each other like they were a real couple. Anybody would think they actually were if they walked in on them at that time.

When they finished eating, they moved over to the couch, where they continued their conversations. Draco pulled out his wand and pointed it at two empty cups sitting on a small table. He grabbed one and handed it to Hermione. She took a sip and let the hot chocolate run down her throat. "I can't believe you did all this, and for me none the less."

He smiled at her. "I told you I wanted to be a gentleman towards you."

"Well you did a good job." They both turned red in the face and looked away from each other, un-denying their true feelings that were growing rapidly. After a couple minutes of awkward silence, Hermione decided to break it. "Want to play a game?" She asked.

Draco looked suddenly interested and she laughed. "Sure." He said, putting his hot chocolate mug down on the table and leaning back against the back of the couch.

"Okay. I'll ask you a question and then you can ask me a question."

"That's the game?" Draco asked, not so interested anymore.

"Yeah, come on its fun. It'll help us get to know each other better." Draco nodded and smiled at how excited Hermione looked. "Okay…" She looked up at the ceiling, trying to think of a question to ask. "What's your favorite subject in school?"

"Potions. And it's not because Snape favors me, either. I just love the way you can make magical things happen without a wand." Hermione smiled at him. He really never did cease to surprise her. "Okay, my turn." He thought quickly. "What's elementary school?"

Hermione laughed loudly, not expecting that question. He smiled at her, actually wanting to know. "It's a school for muggles. See we go to school for 12 years instead of 7." Draco's mouth opened in shock. "Yeah, I know." Hermione said, agreeing with him. "Anyway, those 12 years are separated into groups. You go to elementary school, middle school, and then high school. Elementary school is when you're little and then you just progress." Draco nodded, still not understanding completely but didn't want to confuse himself even more. "Okay, most embarrassing moment." She said turning around and sitting on the couch with her legs folded over each other.

Draco smiled and scooted in closer towards her, putting his hand on her leg. "There's two." He said holding up two fingers, Hermione smiling at him, interested. "The first one was when I was turned into a ferret and shoved down Crabbe's pants. That was awful, almost as bad as that time in third year. I was going to watch the execution of a hippogriff, but then some Gryffindor girl decided it would be a good idea to call me a foul, loathsome, evil, little cockroach and punch me in the face."

Hermione's face turned bright red and she looked away from him. "Sorry." She said, obviously embarrassed he brought it back up. "You were being a foul, loathsome, evil, little cockroach though." She said smiling at putting her hand on top of his. "You're not anymore, though." He smiled at her and she smiled back.

"Best thing that ever happened to you?"

"Probably becoming friends with Harry and Ron." She faked a laugh, but Draco could tell she was suddenly sad and concerned. She looked away, hiding her face from him. "Ironic isn't it?"

He nodded and then pressed her to go on, hoping she would forget about her best friends. "As me a question now."

She looked up at him and gave him a comforting smile, knowing that he was trying to pull her away from her thoughts. She made herself comfortable again and then thought up a question that Draco didn't expect. "Your favorite name. What would you name you're child?"

"Hmm." He said, now looking around the room like the answer was written on the wall. "I haven't really thought about it. I read this name in a book once. Scorpious. I think I like that name for my son." Hermione nodded and smiled, not understanding why he would like such a strange name. "How about you?"

Hermione already knew this answer. "Rose for a girl and Hugo for a boy." Draco nodded. "I know their strange names and seem like I just pulled them out of the blue, but I've always liked those name, ever since I was a little girl."

"I like them." Draco said, making Hermione blush.

"Can you sing?" Hermione asked, catching Draco off guard. "When I'm not longer a huge balloon, will you be able to sing the child to sleep at night?"

Draco laughed. "No. You don't want me to sing. I'm an awful singer." Hermione nodded, but looked sad that she couldn't depend on him to do that. "I can dance, though." He said lightly in her ear. He stood up and held out his hand for Hermione to take. She smiled at him and reached out her hand, allowing him to pull her up from the couch.

Draco placed his arms around her waist and she put her hands on his neck, letting him lead her to the sway of the music. They gazed into each other's eyes for a few minutes, not saying a word to each other. Hermione, finally getting comfortable around him, laid her head on his chest and closed her eyes, breathing in his scent. "This is wrong in so many ways." She whispered into his shirt.

He stopped dancing and put his hand under her chin, lifting up her face so she could look at him. "But it's right in so many more." They both smiled at each other, feeling as one. Draco leaned in and touched his lips to hers lightly. Hermione, now sure that she had feeling for him, kissed him back. The soft kiss soon turned into a passionate one, and they became lost in each other for the first time.

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_hope you liked the chapter! one of my favorites._

_please review! i love reviews soooooooooo much!_


	12. twelve: blinded

_Hey guys!  
Sorry it took me so long to update. Between doctor appointments and work, i've had zero time to write (this chapter was written in the doctors office, just to give you an idea)._

_So i started to think about this story, and i realized that i made Draco too nice way to quickly. So now, i'm backtracking. I found a way to make Draco mean again, but don't worry. It'll all come together in the end so it'll still be a Dramoine. And i actually like this new way i'm going with it better. I hope you guys will too! So please please please review when your done reading! I really appreciate ideas too if you have them!_

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Hermione paced her room for what felt like hours the night after her kiss with Draco. She couldn't believe what was happening and she couldn't believe it was happening between the two of them. It was like she had said: wrong in so many ways. It wasn't just the fact that he was a Slytherin or a pureblood, it was the fact that he was her rapist. He was her rapist and she was falling for him.

Even though she knew she wanted it more then anything and that it was the best thing for her unborn child, she couldn't do it anymore.

Draco Malfoy was her sworn enemy and the sex god of the whole school. If anything, he wasn't trying to be nice and befriend her, he was trying to get her to fall for him so he could get into her pants. He wanted to use her and then dispose of her, like a piece of trash. She had to stop what they had going on, whatever that was, before she ended up even broken then she was right now.

The next morning, Hermione woke up and could hear her stomach rumble. Deciding she wanted to go get some breakfast she put on her school robes and started to head down to the great hall for some breakfast. As she was about to step off the last step of the main stairway, she felt somebody grab her arm and pull her down the nearest hallway. Before she could even see who it was, she was pushed against the wall and could feel soft and forceful lips attach themselves to hers.

She allowed him to kiss her and when he stopped she looked straight into his grey eyes, smiling. As he was about to kiss her again, she came to her sences and put her hand out to stop him from kissing her again. He turned his head sideways and looked at Hermione confused. "Stop Draco." Hermione said shaking her head and catching her breath.

He ran his hand through her curls and smiled at her. "Why should I?" He asked before landing another kiss on her lips. Hermione pushed him away quickly and turned her head to the side. "What's wrong with you?" He asked, almost sounded offended.

"I thought a lot about what happened between us last night." Hermione said turning her head back to face him but not looking into his eyes. She found a place on his shirt to focus her gaze on, knowing that his eyes would hypnotize her and she would never get her point across.

"Me too." Draco said lifting up her chin with his finger so she was forced to look at him, planting another kiss on her lips.

Hermione, now frustrated he wasn't listening to her, pushed him away more forcefully. "No, you don't underst-"

"I understand perfectly." He said moving closer to her and giving her a quick kiss on her forehead. "Last night was…" He looked up, thinking of a word to use.

"Confusing." Hermione finished for him.

"Amazing." He said like he didn't even hear what she said. "You're so much different from all the other girls I've known and-"

"Draco." Hermione said trying to stop him from talking, but he never did.

"the whole thing. I can't even explain it. I can't-"

"Draco…please listen to me."

"I just couldn't wait to see you again this morn-"

"Damn it Draco! You're not listening to me!" Hermione yelled, her temper and frustration now rising. He stopped in mid sentence, his mouth still particially open. Hermione shook her head and turned to so her shoulder was facing him. "I can't do this." She said calmy, almost in a whisper. She lowered her head to the ground and let a tear fall down her cheek, not believing she was giving up the only thing she had left.

"What can't you do?" Draco asked, putting his hand on her shoulder to turn her to look at him.

She shook her head and bit her lip, preparing to walk away. "I'm sorry." She said, taking a step, forgetting that Draco still had his hand on her shoulder.

He pulled her back and pushed her against the wall, putting his hands on the side of her face so she had to look at him. "What can't you do?" He repeated softly. She closed her eyes and let another tear fall down her cheeks. She felt Draco hand leave the right side of her cheek and whipe away her tear. She opened up her eyes and looked into his. He immediately started searching them for anwers, but Hermione didn't keep them hidden in her eyes. "What are you talking about?" He said unpatienly, grazing his thumb along her cheek.

She pushed his hands away and lowered her head to the ground. "I'm talking about this. Us." She said as Draco grabbed her hands and held them tightly inbetween their two bodies. "I'm done." She said softly, looking into his eyes and seeing them suddenly fill with sadness and rage.

"Done?" He said, shaking his head. He let go of his grip on Hermione and wrapped his arms around her, kissing her forehead. "We barley even started." He said softly in her ear.

Hermione sniffled and knew she had to get out of his arms before she changed her mind. She slid out from underneath of them and went to make a run for it, but he was quick. He grabbed her around her wrist and pulled her back towards him. "Please let me go, Draco." She begged.

"No. No, I will not let you go." Draco said with a determined look on his face. "Why do you want me to let you go? I told you I was going to be here for you and I didn't lie. I'm not leaving. I'm not saying goodbye."

"But I am." Hermione said as tears poured down her cheek. "I cant… I can't-"

"You can't what?" Draco said trying to pull her closer but being unsuccessful as she seemed to be glued to the spot she was standing in.

She shook her head and bit her lip, looking from side to side like there was somebody there who could help her. She finally looked at Draco and inhaled a deep breath. "I can't be your whore, your next piece of trash."

Draco looked at her sadly and confused and shook his head, moving closer to Hermione, running his hand through her hair. "You're not."

"I can't wait around the see the truth."

"Then don't _wait_ around, _stay_ around." Draco said, now becoming frustrated that she was leaving him.

"I need to leave, Draco. Please." Hermione said, her shaky voice now seeming to turn back to normal.

"You can't leave me, just like I can't leave you. We can never leave each other, even if we wanted to." He said, letting his finger graze by her growing stomach.

Hermione shook her head and bit her lip, taking a step back from him. "Friends. That's all I can give you."

"I can't do friends." He said now letting go of her hand and leaning against the wall, aggravated.

"I can't be your whore, Draco!" Hermione yelled, taking a step towards him, knowing he was angry at her.

"Well then I can't be your friend!" He screamed at her. She looked at him suddenly hurt. She shook her head, tears now pouring down her face again, and sprinted away from him. She ran for the stairs she came down earlier, leaving Draco standing all alone in the hallway, looking at where she once was. "I'm too attached now." He said quietly to nobody in particular.

-----------------------

Hermione had gone to her room, only to realize that that was the place she didn't want to be. Her room was like a shrine to her now. It held her good and her bad memories. She had spent hours in here with Ginny, laughing and gossiping about almost everything. She had, on numerous occasions, done homework with Ron and Harry while they all sat on her bed. And by the way they looked; you never would have guessed that homework was what they were keeping themselves busy with.

Her room though, was also the place where everything else happened. She glanced over at the wall that stood next to her mirror. He had torn apart her life there, on that wall, and she was dumb enough to let herself fall for the same charming guy that everybody else fell for. She put her glance on her window. The window she had sat at when she thought about what it would feel like to fall down to the ground, to die. Hermione got chills as she thought about it again, and turned towards her bathroom, her attention falling on the tub. That was where she fell apart at the seams, only for Ron and Harry, her two best friends, to come and sow her back together.

But they weren't her two best friends, not anymore. She looked over at her bed and exhaled a deep breath. Her eyes locked not on the bed itself, but on the spots that her best friends had occupied on that day, the day she told them the truth, the truth they hated. The truth she hated. The boy she hated.

She forced her door open, allowing it to slam into the wall as she tore her way down into the Gryffindor Common room. She got nasty looks from the people sitting in chairs, but she ignored them. She allowed her feet to take her wherever they wanted to go. She had nothing to lose.

She stormed her way over to the main stairway, checking to make sure _he_ wasn't still near and could spot her. She practically jumped down the stairs and found herself running out the doors that led to the grounds. The cold bit at her, and she got the chills instantly, but she didn't care. She kept walking until she found what she hoped was a secluded place.

It was a tree, a dead tree, but it was good enough for her. She sat down in the dry, cold grass and leaned her back against the tree. She closed her eyes and allowed the heat to leave her body through her nostrils, bringing in the winter air that would soon reach her lungs.

It may sound crazy, but she loved the winter time. The cold air could send a chill up your spine, but she couldn't get enough of it, especially in times like this. When your body relaxed in the cold, you became vulnerable, exposed to the weather. You mind became clearer to the things in life that were really bothering you. You could clear your mind and just think.

You couldn't do that in the summer. In the summer all you could do was lay down and let the hot sun beat on you until you're a red as a lobster. You would go home in pain and with a splitting headache from too much sun, not having thought or figured anything out.

Hermione loved the cold.

"Hermione, what are you doing? It's like 20 degrees out here."

She turned her head to the side and saw the boy she least wanted to see. "Oh, it's just you." She said turning her head back to the winter clouds.

"Yeah it's me." Draco said almost sadly. He walked up to her and quickly took off his heavy robe, holding it out for her to take.

Hermione shook her head. "I don't want your robe." She kept her eyes on the clouds, suddenly fascinated by them.

"Hermione, come on. Do you want to freeze?" Draco asked, taking another step closer to her. Hermione just nodded, still keeping her eyes on the clouds. Draco rolled his eyes and exhaled a deep breath, taking a seat next to Hermione on the ground. He put his knees up against his chest and held his robe in his hands, planning on giving it to Hermione whether she wanted it or not. "Take the robe." He ordered.

Hermione turned her head slowly, staring into his eyes, than quickly turning her head back up the clouds. She didn't want to take his robe. If she took it, she would be giving in, and she wasn't going to do that, ever. She decided to change the subject. "Their beautiful, aren't they?" She asked, referring to the clouds. She ran her hands through the grass, picking at the blades one by one as she waited for him to answer.

Draco hadn't taken his eyes off Hermione. "Yes, they are." He said with a smile.

Hermione, catching his hint, turned and shot him a deathly look. His smile grew and she rolled her eyes, turning back to the clouds yet again. "That's not going to work on me, so stop it."

"Stop what? I was saying that the clouds were beautiful." Hermione didn't look at him. She _wasn't_ giving in. Draco took his hand and placed it on top of Hermione's. He got a sudden chill and realized how cold she actually was. Hermione pulled her hand away quickly and looked at him disgusted. "You're freezing." Draco said getting on his knees and placing his robe around her shoulders.

Hermione pushed it off and stood up, taking a couple steps forward. She crossed her arm and stared down at the lake. "I told you before to stop it. I told you before I was done."

Draco closed his eyes and exhaled a deep breath. He stood up and went to stand behind Hermione. "And I told you I wasn't." He wrapped his arms around her waist and Hermione flung herself around and out of his reach, backing slowly up as he approached her again. "Hermione, please…" Draco begged. Hermione shook her head and bit her lip. As he approached her, Hermione suddenly remembered the night of her rape, and how identical this was to that night.

Her heart rate began to race and she bit her lip harder, suddenly scared that the same thing was going to happen again, even though on the inside she knew he would never do that to her again. But the cold was getting to her, and she couldn't see inside of her. Now panic struck, Hermione found she couldn't take a step back. She was rooted to the spot with fear, and Draco was getting close. "Stay away from me!" She yelled with a shaky voice.

"I'm not going to hurt you, Hermione." He said in a kind voice with a smile on his face. Anybody could have looked at him and said that at that moment, he wouldn't of laid a hand on her, but Hermione couldn't see that. She was blinded by the truth. She was blinded that night, and she couldn't see Draco anymore. All she could see was her rapist. "Hermione…" Draco got up in front of her and put a hand on her cheek.

Hermione heart started to race more at his touch and she realized then that she could move. Coming to her own defense at his touch, she tried to squirm away, but Draco had her in his arms and he never wanted to let her go. "Get off me, Malfoy!" Hermione yelled, trying to get free of his grip.

"God, Hermione, Stop moving! I'm trying to help you!" Draco yelled as Hermione smacked him in the face while trying to wiggle free. Draco raised her into the air by her shoulders and Hermione started to squeal with fright. "Relax, Hermione." Draco said with obvious stress in his voice but still smiling at her so she could calm down. She stopped moving, hoping for a good opportunity to strike and looked into his eyes. His smile grew and Hermione took her foot and brought it forward in a full out kick to his groin.

He dropped her to the ground and she fell onto her side. She watched as Draco stood bent over in pain, holding his groin through his pants and looking down at the ground. Hermione gulped, her head finally clear and she realized what she had just done. Feeling awful, she crawled over to him and put her hand on his shoulder. "Draco?"

He looked at Hermione with pure hated and pushed her hand off of his shoulder. "Get away from me, mudblood!" He yelled through his teeth, turning and heading back to the castle.

"I'm sorry." She said only loud enough for herself to hear, eyes now full of tears. She had ruined everything that once stood for good in her life, all because she couldn't see. All because she was blinded.

She was blinded and now, because of that, all she could see what the boy who hated her.

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_just a reminder to please review : )  
i need so input people!_


	13. thirteen: committed

_Hey guys!  
Sorry for the short chapter this time! Im actually at a blank here. I knew how i wanted this story to start and i know how i want it to end, but it's the middle that i'm stuck on. If anybody has any ideas, i'll gladly take them into consideration!  
So please review and let me know!  
I also wanted to thank Shanda. Your reviews have believe it or not helped me to figure stuff out and think about the way i'm approaching my story! So thanks!_

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The door slammed shut behind him and he walked over to his desk, knocking everything off with his hand in anger. Books slammed into the wood floor, ink for his quills spilled out onto the floor and spread to his books, and the quills he had slowly fell to the ground. He looked at the mess and breathed through his nose heavily, letting the anger come out.

He hated her. He had never been more wrong about anybody in his life. All he wanted to do was help her. She was pregnant with his child and didn't have anybody else in the whole world. All he wanted was for her not be alone. It wasn't his fault he got attached too quickly. It was her fault, her eyes and the way she talked to him. She could see right through him, and that made him feel vulnerable and open up, but not anymore.

He couldn't stand her, and he was going to avoid her at all cost. _Stupid mudblood._ If she didn't want his help, then he wouldn't be around anymore to give it to her. He brought his hand up to his head and exhaled a deep breath. He couldn't avoid her. He was supposed to make her fall in love with him. That was the plan and who knew what would happen if he didn't do it the way it was meant to be done.

He walked over to his bed and lay down on his back. He put his hands over his head and tried to calm himself down. He looked over at his bedside table to the picture he had of him, Blaise, Pansy, Crabbe, and Goyle. It was from first year, when they were all sorted into Slytherin. They had tough looks on their faces and Draco snorted at the fact that they all already knew they ran the show at that age.

His eyes found Pansy's, who he realized for the first time, wasn't even looking at the camera lens. Her eyes were focused on Draco. Draco smirked. She couldn't resist him. He could get her back in a second, just like he could get everybody back, which is what he was going to do.

He was going to get his friend back and let Pansy hang all over him. But most importantly, he was going to let Pansy hang all over him in from of Hermione. She had feelings for him, she had to. If she didn't she never would have kissed him that night. She was just scared of him. She must have finally got the common sense and told herself that she was hooking up with her rapist. Draco laughed to himself and stood up from his bed, grabbing his wand and starting to clean up the mess he made earlier.

Nobody could resist him, not even Hermione Granger. He would break her by making her jealous. She hated Pansy, and seeing her with him would eventually drive Hermione crazy. Pansy was the perfect weapon for the perfect plan.

He decided to skip all his classes in the morning and just wait for lunch time to talk to his friends. When the bell rang he headed out of his Common Room and went straight for the great hall. He noticed Pansy and Blaise sitting together at the far end of the table and he smirked, walking over and taking a seat next to Pansy. He sat down quickly and placed his arm around her shoulders. She looked at him confused. "Draco?"

He smirked at her. "Yeah, babe."

"Are you back or are you still a mudblood lover?" She said crossing her arms and turning her head sideways.

He laughed. "No more mudbloods, just you."

She squealed, giving Draco an instant headache, and wrapped her arms around him in a tight hug. When she released her grip, she gave Draco a kiss on the lips. Blaise rolled his eyes and exhaled a deep breath. "So what happened with Granger?" He asked.

Draco pulled away from Pansy and looked at Blaise. "She was more trouble than she was worth."

"Yeah, but she's still pregnant with your child, right?"

Draco nodded, grabbing a sandwich from the middle of the table and taking a bite. Pansy had scooted next to him and had grabbed his free hand under the table. "She doesn't want my help." Draco told his friend after he swallowed his first bite.

Blaise rolled his eyes and turned back to his lunch. "Whatever, mate."

Draco took another bite and let his eyes wander over to the Gryffindor table. Hermione was sitting all by herself, like usual, with a sandwich in her right hand and a book in the other. He smirked at her. She must have felt his eyes on her because she suddenly turned her attention away from the book and then met his directly.

Draco took this opportunity and turned to Pansy, noticing that Blaise was staring at him. He lifted up Pansy's face with his free hand and gave her a long, hard kiss on the lips. She moaned in the back of her throat and before Pansy could take it too far, he stopped and looked back to Hermione. She was gone. He laughed to himself. _Was she really already jealous? Could it really be that perfect?_

Draco gave Pansy another quick kiss then got up from the table. "Where you going Drakey?"

Draco rolled his eyes, not believing that she was calling him Drakey already. "I need to take care of something." Draco said, turning to walk away.

"Something… or someone?" Blaise said, eyeing Draco from the table, his sandwhich halfway to his mouth.

Draco gave him a warning look and then smirked at him. "I'll see you in class." He said turning away and heading out of the great hall. He didn't know where he was going to find her, but if she was mad at him, he had an idea where she would go.

He headed up to the seventh floor and found the hallway he was looking for. He stood with his head in his hands, wondering what Hermione would have thought of to get away from him. Without noticing, he had started pacing back and forth, his head still in his hands, and looked up when he heard a banging noise. He smiled when he saw the same door that they had always entered together.

He stepped forward and pushed the door open, poking his head in to see if she was in the room. He smirked when he saw bushy brown hair, he smirked and quietly pushed the door open. He tiptoed over to where she was standing and stopped when he was only about a foot behind her. She was facing a bookshelf and her head was down. She was obviously reading a book and concentrating too hard to even realize that he was behind her.

He cleared his throat and Hermione jumped in the air, turning around and frowning when she saw him. "You scared me." She said quietly, holding the book she was reading against her chest, and looking down at the ground.

"Good." Draco said, smoothing out his hair with his fingers.

Hermione looked up at him hurt. "What's that supposed to mean?"

"Nothing." Draco snapped, walking past her and over to the book shelf, reading the titles of all the books.

"Look…Draco," Hermione started after a couple minutes of silence had passed between them. "I wanted to apologize for what I did earlier. I don't know what came over me."

Draco turned around and faced her. She looked into his eyes and Draco could see she was sad and alone, but he had to stop caring. It all had to stop now. "It doesn't matter. I'm taking your advice."

Hermione pushed her hair behind her ears and looked at Draco confused. "What advice?"

"I'm leaving you alone." Draco said, walking around Hermione and heading for the door.

"Draco, wait!" Hermione yelled after him. He stopped, but didn't turn around to face her. "Don't go." Draco smirked as he heard her footsteps coming closer to him. She placed her hand on his shoulder and her brushed it off, turning around to face her.

She shook her head slightly and lowered it to the ground. "I'm leaving, Granger." Draco said softer then he meant to.

He turned and grabbed the door handle when Hermione said stopped him again. "Did she come to you or did you go to her?"

Draco smirked and turned back around, still keeping his hands on the door handle. "Jealous, Granger?"

She kept her head low to the ground and shook it. Draco laughed to himself, knowing that she was lying. "How can you do this?" She asked looking up at Draco and walking towards him slowly. "How can you be with me one night, and then the next day your with somebody else? It's not fair."

Draco shook his head and walked towards Hermione, shocked she was blaming everything on him. "Hold on a second, you were the one who put a stop to what was going on between us. It's not my fault you're afraid of commitment."

"Oh, so you call that commitment? You call what you and Pansy have commitment?" Hermione snapped, taking another step closer to Draco and almost getting in his face.

"Me and Pansy have our issues, but were committed to each other." Draco lied. He knew it wasn't true, but he couldn't tell her that. If he did, his whole plan to make her jealous would be thrown out the window completely.

Hermione laughed. "Please. You're as committed to her as you are to me."

"No, I'm committed to her as I _used_ to be to you." He said closing the gap between them. "But not anymore." He said looking her up and down. Hermione bit her lip nervously, making Draco smirk. He grabbed the side of her face and gave her a quick, forceful kiss on the lips, then released. It was nothing more than a tease, and Draco loved her reaction. He turned around and opened the door stepping into the frame. "See you around, mudblood." He slammed the door on her face and left her in the room speechless and heartbroken.

Hermione stayed in the room of requirement for hours, her mind racing with the fact that she now had _nobody. _It must have been midnight when she returned back to her room, only to lay down on her bed and sit staring at the ceiling for hours.

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_Hope you guys liked it, even though it was short.  
Remember to review!_


	14. fourteen: dizzy

Hermione woke up the next morning to a pounding headache. She closed her eyes and put her hand over her forehead. She felt warm, but thought nothing of it. She through her legs over the side of the bed and went to stand up, but suddenly fell back down as the room began to spin. She closed her eyes and breathed deep breaths, then stood back up, holding onto the bed post for support.

She opened her eyes and walked over to her dresser to get out her school robes for the day. It was then she noticed that she only had five minutes to get to class. Panic struck her and she quickly put on her robes and tied her hair up in a messy ponytail. She grabbed her books off her bed and ran down to her class.

On her way down, her stomach started to growl and she realized for the first time that she hadn't eaten since lunch yesterday. She made a mental note to grab something after class, and she reached transfiguration as the bell rang. She caught her breath and took a seat next to a Gryffindor she didn't know very well. She got all of her books out and looked up to see Draco and Pansy all over each other two rows in front of her.

She rolled her eyes. _He's rubbing Pansy in my face on purpose. He was trying to make me jealous, but I'm too smart to fall for that. _She thought, putting her attention back on McGonagall who was now writing something on the board. Hermione bent over in her seat to reach inside of her bag for her quill to take notes. When she sat back up, she had to hold onto the desk as the room started to spin again. She closed her eyes and put her hand on her forehead, taking deep breaths. The Gryffindor next to her was looking at her strangely. She turned to him and smiled slightly, but then got dizzier then before and almost fell out of her seat. She gripped the side of her desk too keep her balance, accidently moving it and causing a loud noise.

She didn't notice, but everybody now turned their attention to the loud noise that Hermione had made. She kept her eyes closed and lowered her head to the desk. She felt better with her head down, so she decided to keep it like that. "Miss Granger, are you okay?" She raised her head slowly to McGonagall and forced a smile.

It was then she noticed that the whole class had stopped what they were doing and was watching her. "I'm okay Professor." Hermione said, eyeing her classmates.

McGonagall didn't look convinced, but turned back to the class anyway. Hermione didn't understand what was going on. Why was she so dizzy? Was something wrong with her baby? Panic struck her and her mind started to turn again. What if something was wrong? What if something happened? What would Draco do? He would kill her, probably. He was the one who wanted her to keep the child, for whatever reason. What was the reason? She had just realized now that she had never actually found out why he wanted her to have the baby so bad.

She turned her gaze to Draco and found he was looking at her with a baffled look on his face. She bit her lip and turned her attention away from him. He could sense it too. But was it her, or the baby? "Hey, are you going to go get the stuff or am I?" The kid next to her asked.

"Huh?" Hermione asked the kid, confused on what he was talking about.

"Didn't you hear what McGonagall said? We have to work together to change a goblet from the storage cabinet into a canteen." The boy said, obviously frustrated with her. Hermione looked at the back of the room and saw at least one person from each table getting a goblet from the storage cabinet that McGonagall kept in the back of the room. "Ugh, forget it." The boy said standing up and walking to the back.

Hermione turned her attention to the black board and copied down everything that McGonagall had written quickly. "Are you okay?" She heard somebody asked. She turned to see who was talking to her, and suddenly felt the room going in circles again, only this time it didn't stop. She closed her eyes and tried to keep her balance, but could feel herself fall from her seat. She felt a pair of big hands catch her as he butt gently hit the ground. "Hermione?" She heard the voice call, panicking.

She tried to say something, but couldn't get anything out because of her dizziness. She felt the hands pick her up and her back rested against a muscular arm as another went under her legs. And then, everything went black.

-----------------------

She could hear voices around her. People were talking in a whisper, too low for her to hear. She kept her eyes closed, hoping to hear what they were saying. Feeling uncomfortable, she went to move her legs and felt them hit something. She opened her eyes slowly as they met with a pair of light grey eyes.

Draco was sitting on the edge of her bed and let out a deep breath of relief when Hermione opened her eyes all the way. "Are you okay?" He whispered, not wanting everybody else to know she was awake yet.

Hermione took a quick glance around the room and noticed where she was instantly, the hospital wing. She looked back and Draco and nodded. "I'm fine." She said, biting her lip and sitting up from under the covers. "What happened?"

"Oh, Hermione!" She heard a woman say her name in relief and walk over to her bedside. She smiled up at her Professor. "Are you okay dear? You gave me quiet a scare." McGonagall said, feeling her forehead for a fever.

Hermione smiled kindly at the witch. "I'm fine, Professor. Thank you. But what happened to me?" She asked, looking back from Draco to McGonagall.

"Minivera." Hermione heard a familiar voice come from another room and McGonagall turned to see where it was coming from. "Minivera!" The voice called again.

McGonagall turned back to Hermione and gave her a pat on the shoulder. "Let me go see what Madame Pomfrey wants." And with that she left Hermione's bedside and followed the nurse's voice.

Hermione turned to Draco who hadn't taken his eyes off her. "What happened?" Hermione asked for the third time.

Draco shrugged. "You didn't look good in class, so on my way back from getting my goblet I asked if you were okay and you just fainted into my arms. McGonagall freaked out and had me carry you to the hospital wing. Want to tell me what's wrong with you? Why did you faint?"

"Not sure. It happened to me this morning too, when I woke up. I didn't faint or anything, everything just got all dizzy."

"Is everything okay with…" He looked back over to the door McGonagall had gone into to make sure nobody was coming out. "the baby." He finished.

Hermione smiled at the fact that he still cared enough to stay by her bedside until she woke up. "I think so. I'm just really hungry." Hermione said scanning the table next to her hoping to find something to snack on.

"Well, when did you last eat something?" Draco asked, appearing much too concerned.

"Lunch yesterday." Hermione said, frowning when she didn't find anything to eat.

"Yesterday!" Draco said, panicking. Hermione looked at him with a confused expression on her face. She knew it was bad for her not to eat, but she didn't expect him to care so much. "Granger, you can't do that! You have to eat like six meals a day don't you?"

"Shh." Hermione said, laughing slightly at his over exaggeration. "Not _six_, Draco. Besides, why do you care anyway? I thought you were 'taking my advice' and leaving me alone?" Draco opened his mouth to say something but stopped when McGonagall and Madame Pomfrey entered the room. They both walked over to her bedside, concerned looks on their faces. "Is everything okay?" Hermione asked, now worried.

McGonagall turned to Draco. "Maybe you should go to class, Mr. Malfoy. You've done enough, thank you."

"No. I want to stay, Professor." Draco said, getting a confused look from everybody in the room.

McGonagall turned to Hermione and Hermione smiled and nodded. "I don't mind." She said looking at Draco, then turning her attention back to the nurse quickly. "What's wrong though?"

Madame Pomfrey looked at McGonagall. McGonagall gave her a comforting smile, urging her to go on. "Miss Granger, are you aware that you're pregnant?" Hermione lowered her head and nodded. Now _everybody _knew; students and staff. "Oh." The nurse said, sounding almost relieved that she didn't have break this information to the girl. "Well in that case, I believe that your fainting was due to your pregnancy. Have you been doing everything correctly? Are you getting a full 8 hours of sleep each night?"

"Umm…" Hermione didn't want to admit to her stupidity. "Well lately I haven't been getting much sleep at all."

The nurse shook her head and wrote something down on the clipboard she was holding. "How about eating? Are you eating enough for two people?" She asked, not taking her eyes off her clipboard.

"Uh…" Hermione started, the nurse now eyeing her in disbelief.

"My dear, you need to take care of yourself, especially now! You could be bringing harm to your unborn child." The nurse shook her head again and turned back to her clipboard. "How is your stress level lately?"

Hermione looked at Draco who was looking at her with a smirk. He knew he was stressing her out. He didn't need her to remind him. "Normal." She lied, not taking her eyes off Draco. She didn't want to give the nurse another excuse to scold her.

"Very well." Madame Pomfrey said, pointing her wand to the room she had come from. To Hermione's delight, a plate of food hovered its way over to her, and she started digging in right away. She instantly felt better. "I'll bring you out a potion that will hopefully bring you up to your full strength." The nurse said, turning to leave.

Hermione thanked her and turned to McGonagall who had started to talk to her. "Miss Granger, Professor Dumbledore is on his way down here to have a talk with you, privately." She said, adding the last part so Draco knew he now had to leave. She smiled at the students and then followed Madame Pomfrey into the room she had disappeared into.

Draco stood up from the side of her bed. "Take care of my child, okay?" He said, making his way for the door.

"Draco." She called to him before he opened the door. "Thank you." She said with a smile.

"Whatever, Granger." He opened the door. "Just don't get any ideas that me and you are friends again." He walked out of the door and closed it softly.

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_hey guys!  
hope you liked this chapter!  
remember to review and leave your ideas. im still baffled on what to do next!  
thanks!_


	15. fifteen: hole you're in

The potion that Madame Pomfrey had given her was strong and burned Hermione's throat on the way down, but it also made her very tired.

When she opened her eyes she noticed that she must have dozed off. She sat up and looked around the room. It was dark and the only light was coming from a torch lit above her head and the moonlight shinning in from the window. When she looked over at the window, she realized that a figure of all tall man was standing before it. Confused, she studied his features and realized suddenly who it was.

She opened her mouth to say something, but stopped when the man spoke first. "Good evening, Miss Granger." He said, his gaze still outside. He turned and looked at her though his half moon glasses. Hermione smiled at him and he turned his head back to the window. "Beautiful night, isn't it?"

"Yes, sir." She said quietly to her headmaster as he grabbed a chair from a desk and brought it over to her bedside. "I'm sorry, Professor. I didn't mean to fall asleep."

"No worries, Miss Granger. I only just arrived." He said taking a seat on the chair he brought over and taking out his wand. He flicked it in the air and the candles in the room suddenly lit, giving them proper lighting. "Now we can see each other better." Hermione smiled and nodded, looking down at her hands that were covered by the sheets, as Dumbledore studied her face. "Is something bothering you, Miss Granger?"

She looked up at him, wanting to spill everything. _Yes. I was raped by Draco Malfoy and now I'm pregnant because of it. I was forced to tell my best friends I had sex with him and that's why I'm pregnant. I was forced to lie to them, and now because of it I've lost everything and everyone. And to top it all off, I'm starting to fall for my rapist, even though and I don't want to and I should hate him for what he's done to me. I'm confused and all alone, and I don't know what to do next. _"No, Professor." She lied…again. She lied for him…again. She lied and only put herself farther down in the hole that Draco had dug for her…again.

Dumbledore nodded and smiled at her. He could see right through her. "About your current state…"

"Oh, please, Professor." Hermione interrupted him, hoping that he wouldn't deliver bad news about her having to leave Hogwarts because she was pregnant. That would just be the cherry on top of this awful year she was having. "Please don't tell me that I need to leave the school. I'll just die without this place. I'll-"

Hermione stopped talking when she realized that Dumbledore was chuckling to himself. "Miss Granger, I'm not going to make one of Hogwart's best students leave." Hermione exhaled a deep breath and smiled slightly, nodding at the headmaster. She was calm now and ready for whatever Dumbedore had to say. "What I do need to know, however, is how you're planning on making it to your due date without anybody by your side."

Hermione looked at him with a shocked expression on her face. How did he know she was all alone in this? "How do you-"

"I may be an old wizard, Miss Granger, but I keep my eyes open and ears clean for all gossip and rumors going on around me. I know more than you think." He said with a smile. Hermione nodded and looked down again. _Everybody_ really did know. "Now, tell me, Miss Granger."

His voice was demanding but soft and kind at the same time. It made Hermione feel safe and she felt like she could tell him anything. "I'm not too sure, Professor. I guess I'll just keep my head high with a smile on my face and take it one day at a time."

Dumbledore smiled. "Smart idea. But don't you think that maybe with somebody by your side, you could put a real smile on your face instead of hiding behind a fake one?"

"Yes sir, but there is no one." Hermione said quietly, playing with her hands nervously. "Everybody hates me now because of what I did. They think that I've betrayed them. I have nobody, except…"

"Mr. Malfoy." Dumbledore said, surprising Hermione. She raised her head up and looked at Dumbledore shocked. He really did know more then everybody thought.

"I did have him, but I let him go." Hermione said sadly.

"Now why would you do that?" Dumbledore asked, curious and leaning forward in his chair.

She could say it now. She could let it out and she would be free. She would have her friends back and Malfoy would be out of her life for good. '_No, I'm committed to her as I used to be to you. But not anymore.' _His words ran through her head. She could say that he wasn't committed to her anymore, but she knew just as well as he did that he didn't have a choice. Draco would never be out of her life for good. She would always see him when she looked at her child. She could never leave him, even if she wanted to.

And she couldn't say it now. She couldn't say that he raped her. For the sake of her life and the life of her unborn child, she had to keep this secret. "It wouldn't work out."

Dumbledore smirked. "That doesn't sound like you, Miss Granger. Giving up on something just because it won't work or isn't the right thing to do." Hermione smiled slightly at the old man. "That never stopped you and your friends before."

"It's different now, Professor. I don't have any friends that are willing to take the chances with me."

Dumbledore's smiled faded, but his bright eyes stayed on Hermione. "Miss Granger, I think you are mistaken. You will always have a friend that is willing to take a chance with you. This person, believe it or not, will help you to get out of this… hole your in." She shook her head in confusion, so Dumbledore continued. "You are so busy looking around the hole searching for a way to get out without anybodies help, that if you just looked up you would see a willing hand, reaching to lift you up and out of the hole and into a whole new world that you never knew existed."

Hermione pondered on this for a moment, and then watched as Dumbledore stood up. "When you walk with your head high, keep your eyes open more and listen closely. The person you're looking for is right in front of you, he's just wearing an invisibility cloak." Dumbledore turned the door handle and went to walk out. "Good night, Miss Granger." He said, shutting the door quietly and leaving Hermione to her thoughts.

She knew who he was talking about, but she didn't want to look up. And besides, even if she did look up, his hand wouldn't be there. He had given up on her, 'taken her advice and left her alone'. And if it did, by some slim chance, happen to be there, she didn't want to see it reaching to lift her up and out of the hole he had dug for her.

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_im so happy it finally let me upload this chapter! was anybody else really annoyed with not being allowed to log in for like 3 days? i mean... wow.  
anyway, i know it was short, but i honestly didn't know what to have dumbledore say.  
but i finally figured out how the story is going to go, so now all i have to do is write it and hope you guys enjoy it. ideas are still welcome._

_review please! _


	16. sixteen: magnetized

Hermione sat outside in the spring air with her Herbology book on her lap and her back against the tree. It was now the middle of April, and she was four months pregnant. She smiled to herself as she ran her hands over his now bulging stomach. Ever since the weather had started to get nice, she would come out and sit by the tree that over looked the lake. It was her favorite spot in all of Hogwarts, mostly because nobody else knew about it. It was a place where she could come and be alone, where nobody would stare at her or she wouldn't have to watch as Draco waved Pansy in front of her face.

He still came to talk to her, but it was more to just check up on how she was feeling and if everything was okay with his kid. He never came to actually have a conversation with her. Even though his visits usually weren't civil and had turned awkward, she looked forward to them. After her conversation with Dumbledore, she had thought a lot about going and asking for Draco to forgive her, and finally got the guts to do it, but he didn't seem to want to hear what she had to say.

_Hermione had left the hospital wing and started to walk straight for the quidditch pitch. She knew that the Slytherins would be having practice because they had a big game against Ravenclaw the next night. _

_As she took a step onto the pitch, she stayed in the shadows so nobody could see her. She smiled to herself as she saw green blurs flying all over the place, all of them except for one. She could have spotted that blond hair even if he was a blur in the sky. Draco was busy yelling out instructions to his keepers and wasn't aware of her presence… yet. She quickly walked onto the pitch and found her way over to the boy's locker room. She stood on the side, out of site, and with her arms crossed over her chest, waited. After about half an hour, Draco shot green sparks in the air and everybody landed on the ground, heading to their locker room. _

_Draco was the last one to enter since he was busy checking to make sure they had all the equipment. When he was about to step inside of the room, Hermione grabbed him by the back of his collar and dragged him into the shadows with her. He yelled, but stopped and smirked when he saw who it was. "Ah…mudblood, nice to see you."_

_"You're such a fake." Hermione said, the idea of trying to be nice to him had blown her mind the second he had called her mudblood. _

_"Excuse me?" He said, laughing to himself slightly. He was caught off guard by her sudden accusation._

_"You heard me. You walk around the school like you hate me, Calling me a 'mudblood' and whatever genius names your creative mind can come up with." Draco's smirk grew. "But when it's just me and you, you completely change. You act like you want to act around me when you're in front of your friends, but you're too scared to show them your true feelings."_

_"Listen up, Granger-" Draco said, holding up his finger to show her that he was talking._

_"No, you listen up, Malfoy." Hermione snapped, interrupting him. "What am I to you? Am I the girl that you started to get feeling for before I made the mistake of letting go of the only thing I had left, or am I just the girl you raped, the girl-" Hermione stopped talking as Draco's hand covered her mouth and she was pushed back against the wall, Draco's body pressed against hers. _

_"Keep your voice down, Granger. I'm warning you." Draco said, his hand still pressed tightly against her mouth._

_Hermione turned her head so it was away from his grip and he lowered his hand, his body still pressed against hers. He didn't want to get off of her, and she didn't want him to either, but none of them would admit that. "What am I, Draco?" Hermione asked, studying his eyes. _

_He exhaled a deep breath and looked out to the pitch, just staring and thinking. He shook his head and turned back to Hermione. "You're just another girl. The only difference is I can't leave _you_." He took a step back and turned to leave, taking one last glance at the now heartbroken Hermione. _

_As he was about to walk through the door, he heard Hermione speak, making him stop dead in his tracks. "I'm in a hole." _

_He turned back to her, confusion written all over his face. "What? You're not in a hole. You're standing outside of the boy's locker room and-"_

_"Not literally, Draco." She rubbed the back of her neck in frustration, and then looked at Draco with tears coming to her eyes. She already knew he wouldn't do it, and she didn't know why she was saying what she was saying. "I'm in a hole. I'm in a hole that you dug for me and put me in. I'm stuck and I can't get out on my own." Draco stepped closer to her as she talked, listening intently on what she was saying, trying to understand. "I'm supposed to look up and see your hand reaching to pull me out, but I don't see it, and that's my fault." _

_Draco looked down at the ground and bit his lower lip, not sure what to say to the witch who was almost in tears. "Hermione…"_

_"I didn't come here to try and pry the truth from you. I came here to tell you I was sorry. I'm sorry I pushed your hand away. I'm sorry that your arm got sore from holding it out to me for too long without me taking it, so you pulled it away. I'm apologizing to you now because I want you to find the strength to put your hand back out and help me up."_

_"Hermione…" Draco said quietly, putting his hand under her chin and looking into her chocolate brown eyes, the eyes he had fallen in love with. "I'm sorry Hermione, but-"_

_"I'll use my legs. I'll use my legs and I'll help you pull me out, but I can't do it on my own." Hermione begged, not wanting to be alone any longer._

_"I can't Hermione." He said, taking a step back and walking towards the door. "My arm is still too sore. It's so sore I had to wrap it in bandages until it gets better." He turned the door handle and glanced back at Hermione. _

_She hadn't taken her eyes off of him. "Do your bandages go by the name of Pansy?" She asked, not sure where they now stood in each other's eyes. Draco nodded apologetically and walked inside of the room, leaving Hermione to sink to the floor with her back still pressed against the wall, tears pouring from her eyes and losing all her hope,_

Hermione picked a wild flower that had grown between two small roots that found their way out of the ground. She held it up to her nose and closed her eyes as she inhaled the scent. She smiled to herself as the smell reminded her of the perfume her mother used to wear when she was little.

She laughed to herself and brought the flower down to her stomach, rubbing the end of it in circles all around her growing child lightly. She hummed a tune and she continued to rub the flower on her stomach, wondering if the baby growing inside would actually feel the flower.

Hermione didn't know it, but a few feet above her, on a steady branch close to the center of the tree, Draco knelt down quietly, watching her. He smiled as he watched her hum a soft tune and rub the flower across her stomach. He wanted nothing more than to climb down from his hiding spot and sit beside her, humming the same tune along with her. But that was crazy. He was supposed to be making her jealous, not falling more in love with her the more he ignored her.

As he watched her, all of his attention focused on her and the way she was acting towards her unborn child, his unborn child, a child they didn't even want. He didn't pay attention to any of his surroundings, especially the squirrel that was now inching closer and closer to him. Draco was holding completely still, so the squirrel easily mistook him for part of the tree, climbing onto his foot and chewing on his shoe laces. Draco, finally realizing what was going on, stood up quickly and through his foot in the air, sending the squirrel flying to the nearest branch and running away terrified and confused of what had just happened.

Draco obviously didn't realize all the noise he was making, since he almost fell off the tree when Hermione called his name._"Damn it. My cover's blown." _He thought to himself, quickly jumping down from the branch and frowning at Hermione, mad he was caught. "Hello Granger." He said, crossing his arms and leaning against the tree.

She smiled at him, now standing up and facing him. "Hello Draco." She said quietly, studying him. "Were you…watching me?" She asked, already knowing the answer.

Draco raised an eyebrow and laughed to himself. "Watching you?" He said, blowing air in-between his closed lips, making a pshhh sound. "Please, Granger. Don't get your hopes up." He turned his head out to the lake and studied its surroundings.

Hermione walked over and stood next to Draco, facing the lake as well and looking out. Draco tried his hardest not to look at her, but found out his hardest wasn't his best. He slowly turned his head, studying her amazing features. Her hair seemed to filled with extra volume and blew slightly in the breeze. Her eyes seemed to be focused on something hidden inside her and yet full of happiness and sadness at the same time. Her lips were extra red and thinned only slightly when she smiled. Her smiled created the smallest dimples on her cheeks, dimples you could only see if you actually were studying her face like Draco was.

Hermione turned her head and stared at Draco, just noticing that he was doing the same. When Draco didn't turn his head away, Hermione lowered hers the ground, only for Draco to put his hand under her chin and lift it back up. They didn't smile at each other, they just stared. "Draco… I-" Hermione started but stopped when Draco took his hand out from under her chin and pressed his lips to hers.

Draco was caught in the moment, caught in her eyes. His mind had completely forgotten about the way he was supposed to be making her feel, and he knew he should pull away, but he couldn't. He needed this… he _wanted_ this.

Their kiss came to a sudden stop as Hermione pulled away turning her back on him and walking a couple of steps towards the direction of the lake. Draco just stood by the tree. He knew what kind of emotions must be going through her head, and he felt terrible about putting them there. "I'm sorry." He said quietly, not even sure Hermione had heard him.

She shook her head and turned it to face Draco. "I don't understand you." She said, almost sounding mad. "You ignore me for two months, only saying something to me when it involves rubbing Pansy in my face. Then I catch you spying on me and you kiss me. I don't know what is going through that brain of yours, but I know that mine is confused and filled with so many emotions that I feel like I'm going to explode!" She closed her eyes and exhaled a deep breath. "I can't do this. I can't be on and then off. I already know what I want to do, but what do you want to do Draco?"

Draco turned his head to the side, shaking it and biting his lip. He ran his hand through his hair and then turned back to Hermione. "I don't know." He snapped, frustrated that they were talking about this again.

"You don't know?"

"Yes… I don't know!" He yelled.

"How can you not know? Do you have feeling for me or not Malfoy!?!" Hermione yelled louder than he did. She couldn't believe they were arguing. Every time they got together they argued. They reminded her of a married couple. "Malfoy!" She yelled when he ignored her.

"No!" Draco yelled, mad he was pushing her. He turned on his heel and started to head back up to the castle.

"No what!" Hermione asked, waddling after him since her stomach had made her walk funny. He ignored her and kept making his way towards the school's entrance. "Don't ignore me Draco Malfoy!" She yelled, suddenly feeling really brave. Draco rolled his eyes and kept walking. Ignoring her is what he had to do. He had to ignore her before he did something he regretted. "Draco!"

He stopped suddenly, Hermione knocking into him. "Why are you following me?" He snapped.

"I want to know, and I'm not leaving until you tell me." Draco rolled his eyes again and turned to walk away, but Hermione grabbed his hand and made him stay where he was. She looked up at him, her eyes sad and longing. "Draco, why do you keep ignoring me?" She asked softly, gazing into his silver eyes that were filled with as much confusion as she was feeling.

"Because I have to." He said, taking a step towards her, and running his hand on the side of her cheek, completely unaware that curious eyes were now watching them.

"You don't have to ignore me." She said, looking down at the ground ashamed.

"Yes I do." Hermione looked up at him, shocked.

"Why?" She asked, placing her hand on top of his hand that still rested on her cheek.

"Because if I didn't I would end up doing this." Draco leaned in and his lips attached to Hermione's like magnets. And it was at that moment, that they realized how much like magnets they actually were. Draco was the South Pole and Hermione was the North Pole. They were completely separated and torn apart from each other by everything that ran in-between them. For Draco, every other south pole that came to him was rejected by him in some way. The same things with Hermione, only the rejected ones were the North poles. But Draco and Hermione were special, because they were able to find each other, and they attracted each other, just like the North and South Pole did on a magnet.

They kissed for what felt like hours, only releasing their lips for breaths. To the now growing crowd of ongoing watchers, it was only mere minutes, but it was long enough for the important people to see. Ron stood in the front row of the crowd, clenching his fist and knuckles turning white. Harry stood behind him, arms folded over and watching Hermione with confusion and disgust.

Even though Hermione and Draco had become aware of the crowd around them they didn't stop. They were lost in each other for the second time, only this time they didn't care what happened after or what everybody else would think, they just felt like one. And they continued to feel like one, until a sudden shriek from the crowd drove them apart with shock from the noise that resembled a banshee. Draco smirked as Pansy came pushing through the crowd and marched up to him. "What are you doing, Drakey?" She asked, looking like she was about to cry.

Hermione stood behind Draco, afraid that Pansy might attack her for making out with her 'Drakey', but suddenly didn't feel safe as she saw a boy with red hair step into the circle, walking towards her right side. "Yeah…'Drakey', what are you doing?" Ron asked.

Pansy glared at Ron for making fun of what she called Draco, and Ron just glared back at her for only a minute, and then turned back to Draco. "Draco…" Pansy said, grabbing Draco's hand to pull him away, but he quickly snatched it back.

"Stop it, Pansy." Draco said taking a step closer to Hermione and watching Ron from the corner of his eye, preparing to protect himself at any second from Ron's grip.

"Yeah, Pansy. I think you did enough by making his ear bleed from your screech. Now it's my turn!" Ron said, approaching Draco with his wand in his right hand.

Pansy opened her mouth and turned around, pushing her way through the crowd and stomping her feet as she went. Draco turned to Ron who was now rapidly approaching him. He quickly pulled his wand out of his pocked and held it in front of him. "Draco, no!" Hermione pleaded, grasping his arm and trying to pull him away. "You'll be expelled!"

"Hermione, go. I don't want anything to happen to you or the baby." He said with a kind smile, wand still raised at Ron. Ron took this opportunity to attack, sending a stupefy spell right at Draco's head. Draco, seeing the spell coming at him, pushed Hermione to the side, causing her to fall onto her back as he quickly dodged the spell. "Weasley, you're a bastard!" Draco yelled, getting back to his original spot. "Attack a man when he's not looking. That's really… Gryffindor like of you."

Ron cast another stupefy spell at Draco, but Draco blocked it and sent it flying into the sky. "You sicken me, Malfoy. You walk around with your whore on your arm, wearing her for all to see." Ron said, nodding in Hermione's direction. Hermione, who was still lying on the ground, opened her mouth in shock as tears came to her eyes.

"Okay, Weasley, now-" Draco stopped his threats as Hermione suddenly jumped up and stood in front of him, wand at the ready.

Before Ron even knew what was happening, Hermione was walking towards him. "Expelliarmus!" Hermione screamed, sending Ron's wand flying from his hand and knocking him back a couple of steps from the power she put into the spell. Ron's eyes flooded with fear as he saw Hermione still coming at him with her wand raised. As she reached him, she put her wand in her pocket quickly and slapped Ron across the face, "I'm-" then kicked him in his shin, causing him to grab it and jump on one leg, "not-" followed closely by a push that put him back on his two feet, "anybodies-" than punching him in his chin, causing Ron to clutch it and groan in pain, "whore!" she finished, kneeing Ron in the groin, sending him down on his knees with his hands holding tightly to the pain in-between his legs, almost in tears.

Hermione caught her breath and stood staring at her ex-boyfriend as Harry came rushing over to his aid. The entire crowd had gone silent, everybody still in shock at what she had done. Hermione took on last look at Ron, then slowly turned around and walked past Draco, who was staring at her with a smile on his face, mouth open, and his eyes full of disbelief, and stormed out of the opening the crowd had made for her. As she was about to emerge from the crowd, a sudden wave of applause hit her. She froze in her spot and looked around. Everybody was staring at her and smiling. They were cheering for her. She smiled, then quickly tried to hide it, and turned back around and continued on her way.

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_I hope you liked this chapter. It was really fun to write, especially where Hermione beats up Ron :)  
So, let me know in a review! That would be great. _


	17. seventeen: stuck

Draco found himself waking up to a light tapping noise. He rubbed his eyes and looked around the room. The Slytherin common room was dark and the fire was slowly burning out. His transfiguration book was sitting on his lap open and his neck was sore from the position he was sitting in when he fell asleep. He rubbed his neck muscles with his hand, trying to release the tension and checked the time. It was just about three in the morning. Draco sighed knowing he still had a whole transfiguration paper to write and class was in a few hours.

When he heard the annoying tapping again, he groaned and stood up, stretching. He turned towards where he heard the tapping come from and saw a big barn owl sitting at the window. He through his head back and dragged his feet letting the owl in, already knowing who it was from. _Why would he owl me a three in the morning?_

When the owl flew in, it perched itself on top of one of the wooden chairs in the corner. Draco approached it and snatched the letter off of its leg, staring at the owl like it was all his fault.

_Draco,_

_The Dark Lord whishes to speak with you immediately. Meet me at the tunnels exit in one hour._

_Lucius_

"You have got to be kidding me." Draco said crumbling the note up and throwing it in the fire. "Why doesn't he ever owl me just to say hi." Draco laughed to himself as the thought of his father greeting him with a nice letter or even a friendly hello. He exhaled a deep breath and through on his light robe, then headed for the door. He through it open and made his way towards the suit of armor entrance that he always used to go to sneak to Hogsmeade. He stayed in shadows, even though the dungeons were already dark and he didn't have to worry about any students snitching on him since they were all terrified of him.

When he reached the knight, he checked to make sure nobody was watching and then twisted the hand, lighting his wand, and entering the hole. He took his time walking through the dark tunnel, mind pondering on what Voldemort would want to talk to him about. Most likely Hermione and what was going on. But what was going on, what could he tell him? Voldemort would obviously want to know if she had fallen for him yet, and he could say yes and no lie. He just couldn't say that he had fallen for her as well.

He didn't know what he was going to do, he just hoped Voldemort wouldn't bring anything up, because Draco couldn't lie to him. Voldemort would be able to see right through him.

Draco exited the tunnel and looked around. His father was standing by a tree, only visible because of his blond hair that was identical to Draco's. "Hello father." Draco said in a deep tone, approaching his dad.

Lucius stepped out of the shadows and looked down at his 16 year son. "Son." He said, greeting him with a frown. "Were going to the manor." Draco nodded at his dad and bit his lip. Lucius put his arm on Draco's shoulder and apparated them to the manor's front yard. "I'm warning you son, the Dark Lord has been… quiet lately. I think he's planning something big and you're a big part of it."

"Good." Draco said, trying to act proud. He looked in the opposite direction of his father and rolled his eyes. _Yup, this had to do with Hermione._ They walked through the front doors and Draco followed his father up to the library. Draco was reminded strangely of the time when he had to deliver the information of Hermione being pregnant and remembered how scared he was.

Lucius knocked on the door three times and then waited as it opened on its own. Lucius glared down at his son and Draco inhaled a deep breath as quietly as he could, trying to calm his nerves, and then walked in the room. When he saw Voldemort, he approached him, stopping a few feet away from him and bowing. "My Lord." Draco greeted, looking down at the hard wood floor.

"Draco, nice of you to show us your presence tonight." Voldemort sneered. Draco took Voldemort addressing him as a sign that he could face him now. "Tell me boy, how is your mudblood?"

"She is the way you wanted her to be, My Lord." Draco said, arms laying straight down against his side and he legs together. Anybody who knew Draco personally would have been able to tell that he was scared out of his pants right now. He was scared that Voldemort might see right though him, knowing his true feelings instantly.

"Does she…love you?"

Draco gulped, afraid of the way he had asked the question. He looked at Voldemort for a couple seconds. The obvious thing was to tell him what he wanted to hear, and that was yes. But Draco realized for the first time, he wasn't completely sure of Hermione's feelings for him, and that hurt him. "Yes, My Lord, she does." Draco said, trying to act confident.

Voldemort laughed to himself and leaned forward in his chair he was sitting in. "Good. Now, here is what I need to be done next." He said, a small smirk crossing his face. "Hogwarts will be letting out soon for the summer, meaning we will loose all contact with the mudblood. It is your job to keep an eye on her over the summer. Tell her that you want to see her over your break. This shouldn't be a problem since you're pretending to love her and she loves you back. When you see her though, make sure you see her at her home. Get to know the surroundings and little hiding spots in her house. This will come in handy later on."

"Come in handy? Sir?" Draco said, adding in the last part quickly before Voldemort thought he was getting snappy with him.

Voldemort studied Draco for a long moment, then continued. "For the kidnapping."

"Kidnapping?" Draco said, forgetting who he was talking to. "You're going to kidnap her?"

The deatheaters in the room all started to laugh, but Voldemort silenced them. "Is that a problem?" Voldemort said, sending shivers down Draco's spine. What had he said, was he crazy?!?

"No My Lord, it's just…"

"Yes…" Voldemort said, pressing Draco on.

"I wouldn't want anything to happen to the child she's carrying sir." Draco said, lowering his head to the ground in shame that he was admitting this to Voldemort himself.

"Nothing will happen to the child. That child is going to be of great use to me." Voldemort said, now sitting back in his seat. "Now, you are dismissed." Draco bowed, then turned to leave, but stopped when he heard Voldemort call his name. "Remember the plan. You must get to know her house perfectly so the kidnapping can be easier."

"Yes My Lord." Draco said bowing again and walking out of the room quickly before Voldemort could say anything else.

__________________________________________

Draco couldn't sleep that night. His mind was racing with the fact that he was positive he had feelings for Hermione, and now he was going to have to set her up. He was going to have to set her up in her own home and sell her to Voldemort so he could use their kid for whatever he had planned.

But there was nothing Draco could do. He was stuck between his family's and the girl he loves safety.

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_Sorry it was so short! But hey, i just gave you three chapters in one night, so technically you had a lot to read lol!  
Please please please please review!_


	18. eighteen: because of you

_Previously:_

_Draco couldn't sleep that night. His mind was racing with the fact that he was positive he had feelings for Hermione, and now he was going to have to set her up. He was going to have to set her up in her own home and sell her to Voldemort so he could use their kid for whatever he had planned._

_But there was nothing Draco could do. He was stuck between his family's and the girl he loves safety._

_

* * *

_

Hermione tried to concentrate on what Professor Sprout was telling them, since they would need it for an upcoming test, but she found it extremely hard as her attention kept drawing to those silver eyes. And every time she looked into them, they smiled back at her, full of warmth and kindness. She would smile back, and then try and concentrate on the plant in front of her, but could feel Draco's eyes pulling her back. It was pointless to try and fight them.

When she caught Draco's eyes again, he took his quill and then pretended to eat something with it. Hermione laughed to herself, wondering what he was doing, when he suddenly pointed to her and then himself. Hermione finally understood, and nodded. His smile grew and he turned back to what Professor Sprout was saying, but Hermione now found it extremely hard to pay attention from all the excitement of having dinner with Draco.

Once class was dismissed, Hermione walked outside of the greenhouse and waited for Draco to come out and join her. When they saw each other they smiled and gave each other a kiss. "How are you?" Draco asked, holding her hands in front of him and staring into her beautiful brown eyes.

"I'm fine, you?"

"I'm great now that I'm with you." Draco said making Hermione blush. "Are you hungry?"

Hermione nodded and they turned around to start walking to go get something to eat, but stopped when they almost ran into Ron. They both stopped and stared at him, fingers entwined. Ron stared back, glancing from their faces to their hands. Ron looked awful. His hair was sticking out in the weirdest places, his clothes were wrinkled, and he looked like somebody had tried to heal his bruises after Hermione had hit and kicked him, but failed miserably. He had a huge bandage on his nose, making him look like a white nosed Rudolph, his top lip was swollen to the point of where it almost doubled in size from his bottom lip, and when he walked, he had to limp from what Hermione guessed was pain in his shin from where she kicked him.

Ron glared at Hermione and Draco, then shook his head and stormed off. Draco suddenly cracked up laughing. Hermione looked at him, curious as to why he was laughing. "What's funny?" She asked as they started to walk again.

"He looks like he got in the way of the whomping willow." Draco said inbetween laughs. Hermione now started to laugh as well, noticing that he was right and proud she was the one to cause it. "Good job."

"Thank you. He got what he deserved though." Hermione said seriously.

Draco laughed. "He's just lucky that I was shocked by your strength and bravery that I didn't hurt him myself." Hermione blushed and smiled at the compliment.

"So, where are we going?" Hermione asked, trying to change the subject.

"It's a surprise." Draco said, leading her past the entrance to Hogwarts and started to walk towards the lake. Hermione smiled and allowed him to lead her, enjoying the spring breeze on her face and running through her hair.

Draco watched her from the corner of his eye, admiring how beautiful she was and not believing he never saw it until this year. Then his eyes traveled down to her stomach, which seemed to be getting bigger and bigger every passing day. He exhaled a deep breath, low enough so Hermione couldn't hear, and remembered why he was having a surprise dinner for her anyway.

It was almost May, meaning that within a month, summer would be here. He had to tell Hermione he needed to see her over summer break before he could think up another plan or change his mind and put himself in danger. He felt guilty and awful setting her up, but it was like Voldemort said, he didn't want to harm the baby, he needed the baby. And even though it was possible that Voldemort could be lying, Draco truly believed he wasn't. Knowing Voldemort, he probably had some sick plan that involved using the baby to accomplish it.

Considering that the baby was still in Hermione, Draco knew that even if she was kidnapped, they wouldn't harm her until the baby was out. This gave him at least 4 more months to figure out a plan and keep her safe, which he would do at all cost.

Draco came out of his thoughts when he heard Hermione gasp. She smiled at Draco as he led her over to the same tree that she had caught him spying on her. The reason for Hermione's gasps was that she had spotted a blanket lying on the ground covered with a pitcher of lemonade, a picnic basket, and a vase full of flowers in the middle.

She sat down and Draco took a seat across from her. "Did you do this?" Hermione asked, surprised and happy. Draco nodded and smiled at her as he opened up the picnic basket and got out two sandwiches.

"Ham or turkey?" He asked.

"Hmm…" Hermione said studying the sandwiches. "Ham." She said, taking the sandwich that Draco handed her and opening it up. She took a bite and closed her eyes, savoring the taste. Draco laughed at her face and took a bite of his own sandwich. "What?" She asked, opening her eyes and smiling slightly at him, already having an idea of what he was laughing at.

"Is it good?" He asked, avoiding her question. She took another bite and nodded. Draco laughed again, putting his sandwich down and pouring two glasses of lemonade, handing one to Hermione.

She thanked him and then took another bite of her sandwich. "I still can't believe you did this." Draco smiled at her compliment but lowered his head to the ground, feeling bad that he only did it so he could soften her up for when he had to talk to her. Hermione noticed his sudden concern and sadness. "Are you okay?" She asked.

Draco looked up at her and nodded, taking another bite of his sandwich. "It's just… summer will be here soon and we'll be leaving for break. I'm going to miss you." He said slowly, afraid of her rejecting him and then him having for force her to see him.

Hermione smiled and laughed slightly. "Draco, we're still going to see each other." She said, causing Draco to raise his head in relief.

"We are?" He asked, hopeful.

She laughed again. "Of course. Actually, there's something I need to ask you." She said suddenly concerned. Draco became nervous, but pressed her on. "Well… my parents still don't know. I didn't want to tell them and then they make me come home and I would end up missing school. But now that I'm going to be going back, they're going to see me. I don't think I can do it on my own, so… I was kind of wondering… if…"

Draco smiled at her. "Of course I'll come with you to tell them." She smiled happily and crawled over to the other side to sit next to Draco. She gave him a kiss on the cheek and leaned next to him, taking another bite of her sandwich. Draco laughed at how much she was enjoying her sandwich. "Want to try mine?" He asked, holding his sandwich up for her to take a bite. She nodded took a bite of his sandwich, closing her eyes again to savor the taste.

She swallowed her food and then looked at Draco. She suddenly closed her eyes and opened her mouth in pain. "Ugh." She said, gripping her stomach.

"What? What's wrong?" Draco said, rushed and afraid that something was happening.

"It's just kicking away." Hermione said, smiling at Draco to let him know everything was fine.

"Oh." He said, relieved. "Does… does it do that often?"

"Lately it has been, but it really started yesterday. I think it's because of you." She said, giving him another kiss on the cheek and resting her head on his shoulder as he kissed the top of her head. "The baby always kicks when I'm with you. I think it's because when I'm with you, my heart starts to beat real fast." Hermione said, closing her eyes and enjoying the breeze.

Draco half smiled. He was happy that Hermione had feelings for him, but now he felt extra guilty for setting her up. He just couldn't win, either his family was going to get hurt, or Hermione was, and he didn't want either to happen.

He listened to Hermione's soft breathing and watched as she made a face every time he guessed the baby kicked her. "Hermione…" He whispered into her ear.

"Hmm…" She said, eyes still closed.

"Can I… can I feel it?" Draco asked, surprising himself with the sudden interest.

Hermione raised her head and smiled at Draco. She grabbed his hand and waited to feel a kick, then placed his hand on the spot. They waited patiently and then they felt it. Draco got a huge smile of surprise on his face and laughed. He was truly amazed and suddenly felt that much closer to Hermione. "It's amazing, isn't it?" Hermione asked.

"Amazing." Draco said, not taking his eyes off Hermione. He put his hand on the side of her face and massaged her cheeks with his thumb. Hermione closed her eyes at his touch and smiled when she felt his soft lips touch hers.

They sat under the tree for hours, talking and enjoying each other's company. They even watched the sun set together, and then they decided to head inside. Draco helped Hermione up and waved his wand at their dinner, causing everything to disappear except for one red rose. He picked it up from the ground and tapped it with his wand, saying a spell so it would never die. He handed it to Hermione and gave her a kiss on the cheek. "As long as that rose is still alive, I will always love you." Draco said, kissing Hermione one last time before walking her back up to the castle, hand in hand.

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_Hey guys! Sorry it took so long to update. even though i know what i want to happen, this is the one part that i still didn't know what to do. but i figured it out, and i hope you guys liked it.  
The point of this chapter was to show you that Draco is not only starting to get feelings for Hermione, but also for the baby she's carrying. just wanted to make that clear._

_Also, i cannot take credit for the line where Hermione is talking about her heart beating when she see's Draco. I totally stole that from Juno because its just such a good line! i love it._

_One more thing, if your going to read then please please please review. i feel like a lot of people are reading it, but they aren't reviewing it. reviews help my mind to work better guys!  
Oh, and i wanted to thank TheresNothingInside, raihana175, and loool for sticking to this story from the begining and reviewing every chapter! thanks a bunch guys!_

_remember to review please!_


	19. ninteen: by your side

_Last chapter: He picked it up from the ground and tapped it with his wand, saying a spell so it would never die. He handed it to Hermione and gave her a kiss on the cheek. "As long as that rose is still alive, I will always love you." Draco said, kissing Hermione one last time before walking her back up to the castle, hand in hand. _

_

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_

Months had passed, and now the day that Draco was looking forward to the least was finally here. Over the past couple of months, Hermione and Draco became closer and the bond that they shared grew along with Hermione's stomach. It was simple, they were truly in love. However, they hid their emotions and feelings for each other. If everybody in the school didn't already know that Hermione and Draco had something, you would just of thought they were really good friends. But in reality, they were crazy about each other.

Hermione hid her emotions because she was still afraid of trusting Draco. She had a weird feeling in the pit of her stomach that something wasn't right between the two of them, and she couldn't help herself but to not trust him completely. Even though she wanted to and she constantly told herself that it was nothing and just her pregnancy, she hid her emotions, afraid to show them and then be laughed at when they all turned out to be fake. She didn't want to be heartbroken again.

Draco hid his emotions because he was afraid. Draco Malfoy was afraid. He was afraid that people in the school that had death eater parents would be able to tell that he was really in love with Hermione and it wasn't just an act. If they found that out, they would certainly go to their parents who would soon go to the dark lord and his gig would be up. He couldn't let that happen, especially since he still didn't have a plan.

Well, he did have a plan, but he didn't like it.

Today was their last day at Hogwarts for the year, and it was also the day that Draco would have to go with Hermione to tell her parents that she was pregnant and with his child. He hoped that they would understand, but he doubted it. Good thing they were muggles and they couldn't kill him with a flick of their wand. The good thing about him going to see her parents was he would get to see her house. He intended on getting the information that Voldemort wanted and then he would sort it all out later when he could keep an eye on Hermione.

He knew it was a dumb idea, but it was the only one he could come up with for now.

Draco met Hermione at the bottom of the main stairway and she gave him a hug when she saw him. They walked to the carriages together hand in hand and sat next to each other on the train. Neither of them talked to each other the entire ride except when they asked each other if they were nervous. When the train came to a stop at King's Cross Station, they stood up and gave each other a quick kiss. They exited the train, got their bags, and hoped into a cab that would take them to Hermione's house.

"Are you okay?" Hermione asked Draco when they were a few minutes away from her house.

"I'm fine." Draco lied. It wasn't that he was nervous about her parents, he was nervous about trying to find the right places in her house for death eaters to hide without Hermione becoming suspicious of what he was doing. "Are you?"

Hermione lowered her head and nodded. "I've prepared myself for the worst. My parents have always taken bad news lightly. I just hope they take this lightly."

"Me too." Draco said wrapping his arm around her waist and pulling her closer to him. She rested her head on his shoulder and rubbed her stomach. Draco kissed the top of her head and laid it on top of hers. "Just don't be nervous, okay? I'll be right by your side the whole time."

"Thank you." She whispered, closing her eyes. Within a few minutes the cab pulled up to Hermione's house and she paid the man. Draco got her bags out of the trunk and followed Hermione, carrying both their bags behind him. Hermione turned to Draco before she knocked on her door and gave him a kiss. "Ready?" She asked. Draco could tell she was nervous and tried not to act nervous as well hoping to give her a boost of confidence. He smiled and nodded at her. She exhaled a deep breath and knocked on the door, trying to hide her stomach the best she could.

The door opened and a smiling woman, who looked identical to Hermione except with straight hair, stood before them. "Oh, Hermione!" She wrapped her arms around Hermione in a tight embrace and then let go suddenly and stared down at her stomach. She looked up at Hermione with a shock expression and then turned to Draco. Draco smiled at her, so she turned back to Hermione quickly. "Who's your friend?" She asked, avoiding the question she wanted to ask.

"His name's Draco, mom." Hermione said as her mom didn't take her eyes of Draco.

Draco, remembering his manners, put his suitcase down and stepped forward to shake Hermione's mom's hand. "It's nice to meet you Mrs. Granger." He said with a warm smile. She shook her head and looked Draco up and down, still unsure about him. She smiled anyway and Hermione and Draco followed her inside. Hermione looked at Draco nervously and he smiled back at her. "I'm right here for when you need me." He whispered, putting down the suitcases by the front door. He held Hermione's hand and allowed her to lead him to into the living room after her mom.

As Hermione pulled him along, he took a quick glance around the house. To his surprise, and horror, there were little places that would make perfect hiding spots for death eaters. He bit his lip and shook his head slightly. He had thought and hoped that maybe there wouldn't be any hiding spots for them and Hermione could end up getting away and stay away if she was smart enough. He knew now that she was doomed. Even if she was the brightest witch of her age she wouldn't be able to fight off the number of death eaters that Draco guessed Voldemort would send to capture her.

Hermione sat down on a love seat and pulled Draco down next to her. Her mom sat across on a much larger couch, her elbows on her knees and leaning forward looking at Hermione. She tried to hide it, but her eyes kept traveling to her daughter's stomach. Hermione sat on the edge of the couch, sitting straight and looking around the room nervously. Draco sat up straight with his back on the back of the couch. He was still holding Hermione's hand and had his other hand wrapped around her waist, trying to comfort her. "Where's dad?" Hermione asked her mom, breaking the awkward silence.

"He went to go get something for us to cook for dinner tonight." She said to Hermione, then turned to Draco and leaned back on the couch. "Will you be joining us Draco?"

Draco looked at the woman and then to Hermione quickly. Hermione nodded and smiled, so Draco turned back to the woman. "I would love to. Just as long as you're okay with that, Mrs. Granger."

Hermione's mom opened her mouth to say something, and then stopped when she heard the front door open. "Hunny, I'm home!" She smiled at Hermione and Draco and then stood up and went to greet her husband.

Hermione turned to Draco. "I'm nervous." She stated with a shaky voice.

Draco smiled a comforting smile and then kissed her forehead. "Do you want me to tell them?" He asked, hoping she would say no.

"I can't ask you to do that. Even if you did, I would just be bombarded with questions after you left. At least if I tell them when you're here they'll attack me now and I'll have you by my side."

"I'm always by your side."

Hermione smiled and gave him a kiss. "I know." She turned her head when she heard somebody walk into the room. She stood up and gave her father a hug. He seemed to have the same reaction that his wife had had only he actually asked.

"Hermione, have you gained weight?" He asked as Hermione's mom stepped into the room.

Hermione lowered her head in shame, so Draco decided to step in and change the subject. He stood up and held his hand out for Hermione's dad to take. "Draco Malfoy, sir." The man looked at him strangly and took Draco's hand slowly. "It's a pleasure to meet you. Hermione is always telling me so much about you."

"Yes…" Hermione's dad said studying Draco carefully. He then turned back to Hermione and continued what he was talking about like Draco had never even interrupted him. "Is there something you want to tell us?" He said quickly, crossing his arms.

Hermione looked up at her father and bit her lip. Draco grabbed her hand slowly so that her parents wouldn't notice and gave it a squeeze. This seemed to help her gain her confidence. "I'm…" She seemed to be frozen, unable to actually say the words out loud to her parents. Draco gave her another squeeze with his hand but she only looked up at him. Draco decided that she wasn't going to be able to tell them, so he turned to Hermione's dad.

"Sir, if you don't mind, I think I can clear this up for you. " Draco said, trying to stay calm but finding it hard. Hermione's dad shot him a look that could kill, making Draco's nerves shoot up even higher. "I love your daughter, sir, and she loves me. The love we share for each other made us foolish and we made a huge mistake."

"Damn right you did." Hermione's dad shouted.

"Sir, Hermione's pregnant but I'm planning on-"

"I don't need you to tell me she's pregnant! She's as big as a balloon!" He yelled. Hermione flinched at her dad's stern voice and closed her eyes. She looked like she was about to cry. "And what are you planning? You better be planning on staying in my stupid daughter's life and proving for her and the child." Mrs. Granger came over and tried to calm her husband. She was obviously more understanding then him.

"Sir, my family is very wealthy. I can assure you that your daughter will have everything she needs to take care of this child and I will be there to help her along the way."

Hermione's dad turned and looked at Hermione. Hermione wasn't looking at him. She seemed to be studying the ground and putting all her attention on the carpet to keep from crying. "I thought you were smarter than this, Hermione!"

"Hunny, stop it." Hermione's mom said quietly, trying to calm her husband down again.

"Dad…" Hermione said looking up at her father with pleading eyes.

"Don't dad me! I can't believe you did this! You just ruined your whole life!" He yelled even louder. '_So much for them taking this lightly_.' Draco thought as he saw tears come to Hermione's eyes. He took his free hand and grabbed Hermione's that was already tightly entwined in his and freed his other hand, wrapping that one around her shoulder and trying to stop her from crying. "And you boy! You get off my daughter! Don't you lay another hand on her!"

"Dad!" Hermione yelled, gripping Draco's hand so he knew to stay and not take orders from her father.

"No! This is a disgrace! We raised you better than this Hermione!"

"Mr. Granger, you need to stop yelling at Hermione! It's not all _her_ fault, and besides, if you keep yelling at her she'll become stressed and something could happen to her or the baby!" Draco said, losing his patience and raising his voice on accident.

With this, Hermione's dad turned red in the face. "GET OUT OF MY HOUSE!" He yelled, pointing at the door.

"Dad, stop!" Hermione yelled, still holding onto Draco tightly.

"GET OUT!" He yelled again. Draco turned to Hermione and gave her a kiss, then released his grip and smiled at her. He headed for the door with Mr. Granger following close behind him. He opened the door and walked out. "Don't you ever come near this house again, do you hear me!" He yelled and then slammed the door.

Draco stood outside, unsure of what he was going to do. He stood thinking up ideas when he heard yelling coming from the house. "But I love him, dad!" He heard Hermione yell. He smiled slightly and then watched as the door opened. Hermione came running out and practically jumped into Draco's arms. "I'm so sorry, Draco." She said crying into his shirt.

"Shh, Hermione it's okay." Draco said rubbing her back and watching the door as her father came into view. He stood in the door frame with his arms crossed and glaring down at Draco. "You need to go inside." Draco said putting his hands on her shoulders and smiling at her.

"But-"

"I'll owl you tonight." He said whipping away her tears and giving her a kiss again. "Please go inside, Hermione. Your dad's about ready to kill me."

"I don't care about him. I don't want you to leave, I want to stay with you. I love you." She said wrapping her arms around him again.

Draco smiled and felt guilty for about the third time that day. She had said that she loved him and he couldn't find the heart to tell her that he felt the same. "I'll come see you tonight." He kissed the top of her head and smiled as she looked up into her grey eyes.

"Okay." She said releasing her grip, allowing Draco to give her a kiss before she walked slowly back inside the house, glancing back at him every couple of seconds.

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Hermione sat in her bed holding a picture of her, Ron, and Harry all cuddled up close together, smiling at the camera in the cold December wind when they were in their third year. She studied their faces and realized how happy they all were, how much different everything was back then. They had been friends and had thought that nothing would be able to tear them apart, but they were wrong. Something did tear them apart, and his name was Draco.

Hermione looked outside her window that faced the back yard. He had said he would come and see her tonight, but she now doubted it. It was around 10 at night and she had sat in her room for hours now, avoiding her parents and awaiting for Draco to show. She had watched her parents leave to go to the movies about an hour ago. She had suggested it, figuring it would help them get the image of their pregnant daughter out of their heads, then went up to her room and ignored them.

She turned away from the window to put the picture face down on her bedside table, when she suddenly heard a faint tapping noise on her window. She turned quickly to see a beautiful brown owl sitting on the window edge. She let the owl in and untied the note from his foot, then searched for a treat among her bedroom and handed it to the owl. The owl took off and headed into the night sky. Hermione opened the note and climbed back on her bed to read it. She found the note weird when she read it, but instantly knew who it was even though it had no signature.

_Meet me out back._

She smiled at Draco's handwriting and quickly through on a pair of shoes and ran out of her bedroom door as fast as she could with her stomach wobbling around as she walked. She climbed down the stairs and stopped on the last step, looking and listening quietly to her surroundings. It seemed quiet and still and the lighting in the house seemed to die down, giving it an eerie feeling. Hermione's heart began to race as she suddenly felt like she was being watched. She slowly pulled her wand out from her back pocket and stepped off the last step.

She slowly made her way down the hallway that led to her kitchen, her wand at the ready. She poked her head around the corner and saw that nobody was in the kitchen. She turned around quickly to check her back and saw that nobody was behind her. _Maybe I'm just paranoid._ She thought as she made her way towards the back door, but then stopped suddenly. She felt somebody behind her, and she was positive it wasn't paranoia. She turned slowly and found herself face to face with a hooded death eater.

She let out a piercing screech or freight as the death eater grabbed her. With her wand still at the ready, she cast the first spell that came to her mind. "Stupefy!" She screamed, casting the death eater backwards and smacking his head on the front door. Hermione tore for the back door and stood in the middle of the yard, spinning in circles keeping her eyes open for more death eaters. Surely there had to be more. There wouldn't be just one, would there?

She heard a sudden blast come from her house and turned to see the door flying off its hinges and 6 death eaters emerging from it. She breathed heavily as she held her wand at them, which seemed difficult considering that they had started to move around her. "Give up, mudblood. You're surrounded." One of them said.

"What do you want!?!" She yelled, her breath's heavy.

They all laughed. "You." The one who had spoken first answered.

"Why? I'm of no use to you. Me and Harry Potter aren't friends anymore so you won't get anything from me about him."

They all laughed again. "Let me rephrase that, then. We don't want _you_, we want the _child in you._ "

Hermione gulped as a sudden blaze of red light came at her. Hermione, expecting a spell, was able to block it and sent it right back at the death eater who had used it, knocking him to the ground. This seemed to anger the other death eaters as they now all came at her with spells. Hermione twisted and turned, trying to avoid and block them all, but with the extra weight, it only caused her to become clumsy and slower. She was hit in the back with a spell that sent a sudden pain up her spine. She fell to the ground instantly and felt hands grab her and cover her mouth.

She wasn't able to get any air to her lungs and could feel herself becoming weak and about to pass out. She looked up and tried to study some of the faces of the people who were kidnapping her, as the death eater holding her released her and she fell to the ground. She felt warm hands grab her and hold her head off the ground. "Hermione, hold on. I'm right here. I'm right by your side." The voice whispered. She focused her attention on the boy holding her but was only able to make out short blonde hair and a pointy chin.

Then she blacked out.

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_Sorry for that mean cliff hanger guys. I hope you liked this chapter. The story is about to get really really really good, so please keep reading._

_And keep reviewing too. And if you don't review, then review please. If you taking the time to read the story you could at least just click that button and leave a quick review to tell me what you think :)_


	20. twenty: pathetic

_Last chapter: She wasn't able to get any air to her lungs and could feel herself becoming weak and about to pass out. She looked up and tried to study some of the faces of the people who were kidnapping her, as the death eater holding her released her and she fell to the ground. She felt warm hands grab her and hold her head off the ground. "Hermione, hold on. I'm right here. I'm right by your side." The voice whispered. She focused her attention on the boy holding her but was only able to make out short blonde hair and a pointy chin._

_Then she blacked out._

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Hermione opened her eyes slowly as she moved her fingers over the hard surface she was laying on. She lifted up her head slightly and looked around the room. She was lying on concrete and surrounded by concrete walls, except one side was made up of prison bars. She sat up and got a better look, but then a pain shot through her shoulder from laying on it and she had to grip it. She heard laughter and quickly turned back to the bars, fear striking her.

Bellatrix was standing on the other side of the bars, arms crossed over her chest. Hermione quickly tried to stand up, but lost her balance and fell back over again. Bellatrix laughed again, harder this time, and Hermione stared at the woman, her chest moving up and down from her fast breathing.

As Bellatrix moved closer to the bars, Hermione scooted back on her butt until she smacked into the wall, which caused Bellatrix to screech with laughter. Hermione, fearing her life, quickly searched herself for her wand, even though she was almost positive they would have taken if from her. It would have been foolish for them not to. "Looking for this?" Bellatrix said with a smirk and holding up a wand that Hermione recognized as her own.

"Wh-What do you want?" Hermione stuttered. She was trying to act brave, but she knew that anybody would be able to look at her and tell you that she was terrified.

"Me? Well _I_ would like to torture and kill you, but I'm not the one who wants you." Bellatrix said, pointing Hermione's own wand at her and opening up the cell door. "Let's go Mudblood!" She yelled, walking over and grabbing Hermione by her hair. Hermione yelled in pain as she lifted her off the ground and pointed her wand at her throat. Hermione gulped and tried to steady her breathing, but failed. Bellatrix smiled at the pain she caused Hermione as she pushed her out of the cell and into the dungeon hallways, Hermione's own wand now pointed at the back of her throat. "Walk!" She ordered.

Hermione stood frozen on the spot, staring at Bellatrix and not wanting to do what she said. She was as good as dead anyway in the hands of the deatheaters. When Bellatrix realized that Hermione wasn't going to do what she asked, she grabbed her by her hair again and dragged her out through a doorway. "Let me go!" Hermione yelled, finally finding her courage. She kicked and screamed, trying to get away from Bellatrixs grip.

Hermione was suddenly flung to the ground and landed on her back, smacking her head on the hard floor. She yelled in pain as she put her hand on where the bump would be. She looked up and saw Bellatrix standing in-between two much larger death eaters who Hermione didn't realize. "Pick up this piece of filth and take her to see the Dark Lord." Bellatrix ordered the men.

They reluctantly made their way towards Hermione and she quickly tried to craw away but stopped when a sudden pain shot through her whole body. She screamed in pain, louder than she ever had before and felt the curse lift off her. She heard Bellatrix laugh as she felt the two men pick her up roughly and she felt her feet leave the ground. She kicked and screamed, trying to get free, as the two men carried her down the hallway, closely followed by Bellatrix. "Let me go!" Hermione yelled the whole way down the hallway.

When they reached a big set of wooden doors, the two men stopped walking, but Hermione didn't stop fighting. Bellatrix stepped in front of the deatheaters and knocked on the door three times for the door to open automatically. The deatheaters carrying Hermione followed Bellatrix into the room. Hermione was no longer screaming, but she was fighting. She was terrified that she was about to lose her life and she wasn't going down without a fight.

She looked around the room to see about 20 deatheaters all standing in a circle. At the front of the circle, sitting in a big green chair, sat none other than Voldemort himself. Hermione stopped fighting as the two men dropped her to the ground and found their way back outside the door. Bellatrix walked past Hermione and stood next to Voldemort.

Hermione was laying on her hands and knees, staring at the ground. She hadn't moved from the position that she had landed in when the deatheaters through her. She was afraid to. She was afraid that if she did, she would be acknowledging the people in the room and also her death. "Well, Draco, I guess a congratulations is in order." She heard Voldemort sneer. She looked up and at all the faces in the room until she came to Draco's. He was staring at her with a sad and guilty look in his eyes, but his face looked proud.

"Thank you, My Lord." Draco said, finally taking his eyes off Hermione and turning to Voldemort.

Hermione didn't take her eyes off Draco. It couldn't be true. Did he really do this all to her? Was he really the reason she was here?

Hermione heard laughter coming from Voldemort so she turned to face him, now standing up on her feet. She had to act brave. She had to act like she didn't have a worry in the world about being in the situation she was in now, but Voldemort could see right through her. "Potter's mudblood looks confused. Why don't you tell her what you did, Draco." It was an order, not a question.

Draco looked at Hermione, and she couldn't quiet read his expression. "I pretended to fall in love with you and get you to trust me, so that I could break you. Then I helped all the deatheaters by telling them the places to hide in your house so that we could kidnap you and bring you here."

Hermione opened her mouth in shock as tears fell down her cheeks. She shook her head no and stared at Draco. Voldemort laughed to himself as the smirk he was wearing grew even larger. "Did you actually think that he loved you, mudblood?" Voldemort asked, now standing up and walking towards Hermione. "Did you actually think that a pureblood would want somebody of the likes of you?"

Hermione kept her eyes on Draco as he lowered his head in shame. "I thought so." She said quietly, trying to find her bravery again. "But now I know that he's just as pathetic and useless as the rest of you!" Hermione yelled, turning to face Voldemort and the rest of the deatheaters.

Voldemort smirked, but Hermione could tell he didn't like what she was calling him. She felt the pain shoot through her body that she felt earlier and fell to the ground again, screaming. She wanted to beg, to plead with him, to make him stop, but she knew that that was what he wanted and she wasn't going to give it to him. "I think that you, mudblood, are the pathetic one." He said stopping the curse. "You have nobody now. The only person you have is that child growing inside of your stomach. But you're not going to have that for much longer either."

"What are you talking about?" Hermione snapped, feeling the curse run through her body again and then stop after she fought back the screams and finally let one out.

"The only thing keeping you alive is that baby. Once you give birth, I'm taking the baby and you, mudblood, will be handed over to my deatheaters and they can kill you in whichever way they please." Voldemort said, now walking in circles around Hermione. Hermione noticed that Bellatrix's grin grew after he said his plans for her.

"No! You can't! I won't let you!" Hermione yelled standing back up, only to fall to the ground again as Voldemorts curse hit her harder than before.

"And what are you going to do to stop me?" He removed the curse as he asked over the laughter of the deatheaters in the room. Hermione opened her mouth to say something, but stopped when she realized that there was nothing she could do. Usually she would hope for Harry to come and save her, but Harry didn't even know she was gone. And even if he did, would he come and save her? He and Ron hated her now. Voldemort laughed, realizing that she had nothing to say. "You have nobody, mudblood. Nobody!" He yelled walking back over to his seat and sitting down. Hermione kept her eyes on the ground. He was right. She had nobody, but she still had to believe that her best friends cared about her enough to realize that she was missing. "Draco, take your mudblood back to the dungeons."

Hermione kept her eyes focused on the ground and felt a set of familiar hands grab her and lift her up off the ground, then start to carry her out of the room. She found her strength for one last time and tried to fight out of Draco's arms. He held onto her good and Hermione knew there was no escaping. "You're wrong!" She yelled back at Voldemort before Draco could haul her out of the room. "Harry will stop you! Harry is going to figure this out and he's going to come and stop you!" Hermione screamed as Draco shut the doors and lifted her up and over his shoulder. "Put me down, Malfoy!" She yelled as he carried her down the hallway.

"Stop hitting me, Hermione. You're hurting me." He said quietly and sadly.

"Good! Now let me go! I hate you! I hate you!" Hermione continued to kick and scream until they reached her cell again. Draco placed her back on her feet and wrapped his arms around her in a tight embrace. "Get off me!" Hermione yelled, pushing him off and backing up against the wall. "You were faking the whole time? You never loved me, did you?" She asked, the tears that should of came hours ago finally catching up to her.

"No. It's not true." Draco said, trying to plead with her. He took a step towards her, but she only pressed herself back against the wall even farther. "I only said those things because _he_ was standing there."

"Get away from me. I hate you!" She yelled for the thousandth time.

"Hermione, please. I promise that you're going to be okay. I'm not going to let anything happen to you or that baby. Trust me."

"No! I hate you and I certainly don't trust you! I'm going to die and it's your entire fault!" Hermione yelled, slowly falling the cold ground.

"I'm not going to let that happen!" Draco said, kneeling down next to Hermione who had found her way to the floor. "I love you." He said quietly, whipping her tears away.

Hermione swatted his hand away and turned her head to the sound so she was staring at the wall.

"Hermione…" Draco said softly. Hermione closed her eyes and kept her head facing the wall. "I'm sorry." He said even quieter and stood up, turning to walk out the door. He locked her cell door and took on last look at the girl he loved and what he was putting her through, and then walked away without any idea of what he was going to do next.

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_Sorry it took so long to upload this chapter. I had to hand my dog over to the township i live in for them to euthanize him. It turned out to be the most depressing and inhumane thing i've ever had to do, so needles to say, i wasn't in the writing mood the past couple of days._

_But i hope you guys liked this chapter. It actually didnt turn out how i expected it to, but it's still good._

_Please review. It'll totally brighten up my mood and hopefully help me to get back in the writing mood again.  
_


	21. twenty one: her best friends

_Last Chapter: "Hermione…" Draco said softly. Hermione closed her eyes and kept her head facing the wall. "I'm sorry." He said even quieter and stood up, turning to walk out the door. He locked her cell door and took on last look at the girl he loved and what he was putting her through, and then walked away without any idea of what he was going to do next._

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Hermione was awake even though her eyes were closed. She could feel the cold concrete on her back and the draft that seemed to be coming from nowhere, but yet inside her head she still denied, she still wished that she wasn't where she knew she was. She inhaled a deep breath, then opened her eyes to reveal the same cell that she had spent that past two nights in.

Her legs that she had curled up to protect her growing child had fallen in the night. She moved them back up and that's when she realized that a blanket was laying across her stomach and legs. She didn't remember getting a blanket or putting one on, so she quickly through it off her freezing body and stood up. As she stood up, she felt herself going dizzy and almost fell back down to the ground. She held onto the wall for support and placed her hand on her growling stomach.

She was hungry. The last time she remembered getting anything to eat was at dinner two nights ago when she had come home, right before she was kidnapped. She groaned as she felt her child kick her hard. _The poor thing must be starving_. Hermione thought, not carrying about herself. She found her balance and walked over to the cell bars. She placed her hands on two bars and leaned her head in-between two other bars, trying to see down the hallway.

She needed to eat. They wouldn't starve her, especially if Voldemort wanted the baby. He wouldn't want her dead. He had said it himself. "Hello?" Hermione yelled loudly down the hallway. "Is anybody there?" She yelled even louder.

When nobody answered or showed themselves, Hermione closed her eyes. She wanted to give up all hope. Her cry for help with no response was just a reminder to how alone she really was. Nobody cared for her. She had thought that Draco did, but he didn't. He was only using her emotions to make her more vulnerable in the end, and it had worked.

He didn't love her. He only wanted to help his family grow closer to Voldemort, and he did exactly that. Voldemort couldn't be happier all thanks to Draco. Voldemort now had Hermione, who used to be best friends with Harry Potter, his enemy and the only one who was able to stop him. He also had Hermione's baby. Hermione hadn't thought of why he would want her child, it didn't make much sense. Hermione figured she could probably figure it out, but she was too weak and her brain wasn't functioning correctly.

Hermione shook her head and let a tear fall from her eyes to the floor. She was truly alone.

"Hermione…?" She heard a soft voice call. She shot her head up quickly and backed up from the bars cautiously when she saw who was standing before her. "Are you okay?" Hermione just stared into the silver eyes, not trusting anything that he did or say, even if it was a question. Draco exhaled a deep breath and held something up that Hermione hadn't noticed he was carrying until just now. "I bet you're starving." He said, opening her cell and walking over to her.

She glared down at the hot meal that Draco was holding in his arms. Her mouth started to water and her stomach growled even louder, almost like it knew food was near. "I don't want food from you." She said quietly and sadly.

"Hermione, please stop this." Draco said walking towards her with the tray in his hands. Hermione backed up against the wall and sank down to the floor. She turned sideways, putting her back to Draco and leaning her head against the concrete wall. She brought her legs up against her stomach and wrapped her arms around them. She closed her eyes, not wanting to look into his silver eyes, the silver eyes that belonged to the man that she had given her heart to.

She heard Draco sigh and his footsteps came up behind her. Her heart started to race at the idea of how vulnerable she was with her back turned to him like this. She bit her lip, forcing her attention to disappear from her fear and go to the pain in her now throbbing and bleeding lip. She heard something hit the ground next to her and quickly opened her eyes and looked over at the object. Her eyes became set on the meal that Draco had offered her earlier, so she tore her eyes back to the inside of her eyelids.

She jumped slightly when she felt the same blanket from before wrap around her shoulders and fall into her lap. She closed her eyes tighter and allowed another tear to fall down as she heard her cell door open and shut. "Eat Hermione." She heard Draco said quietly, then heard his footsteps travel slowly down the hallway.

Hermione opened her eyes and looked down at the food on the floor. She laid her legs out on the floor and placed the plate on top of her legs. She stared at the meal. She didn't want to eat anything that Draco had given her, but this meal was more then she had expected. She took a bite of the chicken and allowed her taste buds to swim in the juices of the chicken.

She had to eat even if she didn't want to. She had to keep the unborn child inside of her alive, especially since it was the only thing keeping her alive.

She devowered the meal in mere minutes and then pulled the blanket laying across her closer to her freezing body, her mind racing with thoughts of why Draco was toying with her the way he was, especially if he faked the whole thing.

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Hermione had spent the next couple months in the same spot. She hadn't showered since she was taken from her home. Her hair was no longer curly from all the grease that had piled up over the past months and had so many knots in it that it became poofier then usual. Her light skin was now dirty and covered in scratches from spending time on the dirt floor of her cell; her clothing had been torn and smelled of must and sweat.

Despite all of the negatives, she was fed well. Draco had always come to her cell and had given her a hot meal. She was thankful, because if it wasn't for him, she would barley get anything to eat, and probably starve to death or the baby would die from starvation.

Hermione, however, still didn't trust Draco. She hated him for what he had put her through, even though he apologized a million times already and said he never meant it to go this far. She couldn't help but put the pieces together and figure out that what Voldemort had told her made perfect sense. He had forced her tell her friends, making it so she had nobody and allowing him get to her easier, and he had forced her to keep the kid. He had said that he wanted to keep the kid because he didn't believe in killing but it made sense that he would have done it to make Voldemort happy.

Hermione sat up against the wall one morning, running her hand along her hug stomach as the baby kicked her back. She looked up when she heard her cell open, but then shot her head back to her stomach when she saw Draco staring at her with a smile. Hermione was jealous that he could smile. She hadn't smiled in over 8 months, but that was just a guess considering she didn't really know how long she had been held prisoner at the Malfoy Manor.

Draco placed the tray down in front of her and sat beside her. It was uncommon for him to sit next to her in her cell, but over the past week, he had been doing it on a daily basis. Hermione thought he was scared that she was going to pop any day now, and her though was confirmed that morning. "You know, it's almost September." He said putting his knees up to his chest and staring at the ground as Hermione dug into her eggs and bacon.

"I wouldn't know." Hermione snapped, not looking at Draco and slowly eating her eggs with her fingers, even though she could feel his eyes on her now. "I haven't seen the sun in months." She said with a mouth full of eggs.

"I can sneak you outside if you really want to see the sun." Draco said smiling at her.

"Why would you do something like that? Your 'Dark Lord' wouldn't appreciate you going against his wishes." She said ripping a piece of bacon into her mouth.

"Will you stop acting like that?" Draco said, getting pissed and standing up.

"Acting like what?" Hermione asked shaking her head.

"I don't understand what your problem is with me. You'd be dead now if it wasn't for me! I've done nothing but keep you safe and out of harm's way and you repay me with sarcasm?"

"Out of harm's way?!?" Hermione shook her head and looked around her cell. "You call _this_ out of harm's way! I'm going to die, Malfoy! In case you didn't know, the definition of harm is-"

"I know the fucking definition of harm, Hermione!" Draco yelled at her. He exhaled a deep breath and ran his hand through his hair, staring Hermione down. She sat on the floor, staring at the concrete and biting her lower lip. She was scared, Draco knew this, but he was scared to. Hermione was going to pop any day now, and he still had no clue how he was going to save her. He hadn't thought of anything, and he hoped that he would be able, even though he had a scary feeling that there was nothing he could do. "I'm scared, Hermione." He said in a light whisper that wasn't meant for her to hear.

"What?" She asked. She thought she heard what he had said, but didn't think it was possible. Her gave fell upon his silver eyes that were drowning in fright. "Did you just say that you're scared?"

Draco gulped and then nodded his head. He didn't want to admit it, but in a weird way it made him feel better. "You due in September." He said in a whisper, looking away from her and back to the ground.

"I know." Hermione said just as quietly. "I'm due in September…and I'm going to die in September."

"No you're not!" Draco said quickly and loudly. Hermione studied him as she took a step towards her and kneeled down next to her. Her heart started to beat against her chest as Draco's hand breezed over her cheek and started to massage it with his thumb. She closed her eyes as his lips touched hers, then she pulled away and turned her head to the side, studying the wall like it held the answers to a test. Draco exhaled a deep breath as he could still feel her lips on his. He stood up and turned to leave, then before he made his exit, he turned back to her quickly. "I still love you, Hermione. Whether you want to believe the truth or not is up to you."

And with that, Draco left Hermione in the room all alone, only to ponder her thoughts on the boy she had given her heart to.

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Harry sat at the kitchen table at the Burrow. His mind had been racing all summer about Hermione. He hadn't talked to her since she had delivered the information about her being pregnant with Draco's baby. He had hated her after that, but now he felt awful for the way they had treated her. They didn't even give her time to explain before they ran off. Harry hadn't even stopped Ron from calling her a whore, even though he knew it was wrong and that wasn't really their Hermione. Hermione wasn't a whore, and she deserved their apology and their ears.

Harry exhaled a deep breath as he stood up and looked out the window at the full moon. It was close to three in the morning, and he couldn't sleep. He came down into the kitchen to get a glass of water about an hour ago and still hadn't returned. He needed to see Hermione. He needed to know that one of his best friends was okay, that she was safe. Somehow, he had a feeling she wasn't.

"Harry? Bloody hell, what are you doing?" Harry turned around quickly to see Ron standing at the foot of the stairs, squinting at his best friend.

Harry tried to smile but failed, so he turned back to the moon. "We were wrong, Ron." Harry said as he heard Ron come up behind him. "We owe her an apology."

Ron got quite and stopped walking. Harry turned to see that he was looking down at the ground biting the side of his lip. "I know. I've been thinking about her all summer."

Harry smiled at his friend's guilt. He could only imagine what Ron was going through and how he was feeling after calling Hermione what he called her. He never meant it, he was just pissed, but he got what he deserved when it came to Hermione defending herself. Harry's smile grew at the thought of Hermione beating Ron senseless. "We'll go to her house tomorrow. We need to talk to her. We're her best friends and we should be there for her." Harry said putting his hand on Ron's shoulder. Ron looked up and nodded. Harry was right; Hermione needed them now more than ever.

___________________________

Harry and Ron headed out for Hermione's house the next morning. They told Mrs. Weasley that they were going to Diagon Alley for some early school supplies and some lunch at the Leaky Cauldron, and she happily let them go. She never wouldn't have allowed them to travel to Hermione's home, especially if she knew what Hermione was going through right now. As far as Mrs. Weasley knew, Hermione was on vacation with her parents for the summer and that's why she wasn't with her best friends at the burrow.

They had decided to use the floo network since they had used it once before to get to Hermione's home and knew that this was the easiest way. Harry went first, followed seconds later by Ron. The stood up and cleaned the soot off of themselves and then greeted a very surprised Mr. Granger. "Hello, Mr. Granger." Harry said nodding at him.

The man stared back, shocked that two boys had just come out of his fireplace. He opened his mouth to say something, and then was interrupted by Mrs. Granger. "Oh, Harry and Ron." She said wrapping them in a tight embrace. "It's so nice to see you again. Haven't seen the both of you since last year at… oh, what's the place called again?" She said tapping her finger against her chin and looking up at the ceiling.

"Diagaon Alley?" Ron asked, trying to help her with the magical places that she wasn't familiar with.

Mrs. Granger smiled at Ron. "Yes, Diagon Alley."

"So, what brings you boy's here today?" Mr. Granger asked, standing up next to his wife and crossing his arms at Harry and Ron.

"We came to talk to Hermione." Ron said, wondering why Mr. Granger looked so tense.

Hermione's parents both looked at each other with a confused look on their faces, then turned back to Harry and Ron. "We-"Mr. Granger started, but was interrupted by his worried wife.

"Isn't Hermione with you two?" She said quickly and nervously.

"No, ma'am." Harry said, looking at Ron with a confused look. Ron looked back at Harry and shrugged his shoulder, worried look in his eyes.

Mrs. Granger quickly ran into the kitchen and came back a couple minutes later and handed a piece of parchment to Harry. Harry read over it quickly and could feel his heart beat against his chest harder and harder with every word he passed.

_Mom and Dad,_

_Sorry to leave you without saying goodbye, but something important has come up. I need to go to the Burrow and see Harry and Ron. It's confidential and I'll be there all summer. I love you and I'll see you when I see you._

_Hermione_

Harry read the note over several times, Ron reading it over his shoulder. "We came home one night and found the note and Hermione gone. We thought that, with you three always disappearing and going on adventures, that this was just another one."

"Mrs. Granger, we didn't go on a adventure and Hermione's not with us." Harry said, now putting the parchment down on the coffee table in front of him. The Granger's now looked worried and Mrs. Granger was almost in tears. "Don't worry Mr. and Mrs. Granger. We're not going to rest until we find Hermione, I promise." Harry said.

Ron nodded back at Hermione's parents as they grabbed the floo powder they had brought with them for the return trip home, and went out on their search to find their best friend.

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_I just wanted to thank everybody for the nice reviews about what happened to my dog. It helped a lot!_

_So i hope you liked the chapter! This one took a really long time to write, but i finally got it done and im happy with it. But what really matters is if you were happy with it, so review and let me know!_

_It might be a couple of days for the next chapter because its going to be the best one yet so i want to make it perfect! So be patient, because it'll be worth the wait._

_Remember to review. Just hit that button!_


	22. twenty two: when it happened

_Last Chapter: Ron nodded back at Hermione's parents as they grabbed the floo powder they had brought with them for the return trip home, and went out on their search to find their best friend._

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Hermione was standing when it happened. She had just woken from a cat nap, since there wasn't really anything else to do in a cell, and her legs had fallen asleep. She stood up to stretch her legs and wake them up, and decided that she didn't just want to stand in the middle of her cell looking like an idiot, so she stood against the wall. She had her arms folded up over her head and placed on the cold concrete wall while her forehead rested on her arms. Her eyes were closed and she was breathing slowly, her huge stomach resting on the concrete wall. She turned around with her back against the wall and placed her two hands on her stomach. She looked down and smiled, rubbing her hands in circles and humming.

That was when it first started. Her stomach started to hurt and she got a gripping sensation that seemed to spread from her stomach to her back for only about thirty seconds, and then disappear completely. The pain was enough to make her buckle over and grab her stomach. She let out a piercing scream as the pain subsided and she ran her hand through her hair, still bending over and gripping her stomach.

She tried to calm her breathing, but all she could think was of how she had never felt this pain before. This wasn't the usual hard kicks that her baby had given her or her stomach growling from hunger, this was different. She slowly lowered herself to the floor again, but stopped when the pain shot back a few minutes later. She screamed again and grabbed her stomach in a bear hug. She was bent over farther now, her back against the wall. "This can't be happening already." She said quietly, letting out another scream as the pain seemed to worsen.

She closed her eyes as tears fell from them. She realized that she was only a few inches from the ground and let herself fall. She kept her eyes closed as she heard the door of her cell open quickly. "Hermione?" She heard a familiar voice ask. She looked up into his silver eyes and exhaled a deep breath. He walked over to her and knelt down beside her, running his hand on the side of her cheek as she looked at him with tear stained eyes. "Are you okay?"

She opened her mouth to tell him her theory when the contractions started again. She through her head against the wall and screamed louder than before. She bit her lip to try and control her screaming and closed her eyes tightly. She let out a whine as tears of pain fell down her cheeks and she found herself gripping her stomach again. Draco quickly grabbed her hand and squeezed it tightly. The contraction seemed to stop on his touch and Hermione turned to him quickly. "I'm having contractions!" She was able to get out through her deep breaths.

Draco looked at her, not sure what to do. Should he go tell somebody? Did he have a choice? He couldn't deliver this baby on his own. "What- What should I do?" Draco asked, standing up and suddenly panicking.

"Go get help!" Hermione yelled, the realization of what was happening finally hitting her.

"Help?" Draco asked. He wasn't himself. This was the moment that he was looking forward to the least. This very moment meant that his time to think of a plan was up and so was Hermione's time on earth.

"Yes! Are you a fucking obstetrician?" Hermione screamed as her eyes opened wide with frustration.

"No." Draco said shaking his head and walking around the room in circles.

"Go find somebody who can do this then, Malfoy!" Hermione yelled as another contraction started. With Hermione now screaming from the pain, Draco fled out of her cell, leaving the door open and fleeing for his father's office.

He ran up the stairs of his house two at a time and ran through his dad's office door, allowing the door to smack into the wall. His noticed instantly that his father was in the middle of an important conversation with another deatheater, but he didn't care. Lucius stood up from his desk, a furious look on his face, as the other deatheater turned to see what was going on. "It's Granger." Draco said, bent over with his hands on his knees and trying to catch his breath. "She's…having contractions." He said through deep breaths.

Lucuis's furious look suddenly turned anxious as he looked quickly at the deatheater he was talking to. "Go tell the Dark Lord that the mudblood is giving birth to the child." The deatheater nodded and then quickly fled the room. Lucius walked over to Draco and placed a hand on his son's shoulder. "Go back to the dungeon's son." Lucius said calmly.

"But what about-"

"We have a mediwitch on call. I'll send an owl to her and she'll be here within a few minutes. You need to go and watch the mudblood." Lucius said. Draco nodded quickly and sprinted back down the stairs and to the dungeons.

Draco made his way back to Hermione's cell as she let out another scream. He quickly ran and sat beside her, grabbing her hand. "It's going to be okay, Hermione." He said still panicking.

"Did you get somebody?" Hermione asked quietly. She was out of breath and already exhausted.

Draco forced a smile. "Yes. A mediwitch is on her way." He said as they heard footsteps coming down the hallway. They looked up and saw Lucius, Bellatrix, and three other women that Hermione didn't know watching them through the bars of her cell. Lucius looked anxious and kept licking his lips, while Bellatrix had an evil smile on her face and kept laughing to herself. Hermione knew it was because she loved to see her in pain.

Hermione let out another scream as Bellatrix jumped with excitement. Draco grabbed her hand tighter and looked into her eyes. She looked back at his as tears fell from her face. "I'm so scared." She said as Draco squeezed her hand tighter.

Draco opened his mouth to say something but stopped when he heard an angry woman's voice come from down the hallway. They both turned their eyes on the door as the mediwitch came running through the cell. She seemed to be muttering to herself about dirty conditions and prisoners. Lucius and Bellatrix followed closely behind her. The woman knelt down next to Hermione. "How many so far?" She asked.

"Contractions?" Hermione asked. The woman nodded as Hermione let out another scream and grabbed her stomach. "Seven!" She yelled in the middle of her scream.

The mediwitch turned to Lucius. "You can't expect me to deliver a baby here?"

"You will do as you're told, and this is what you were told to do, so do it." He looked over at the three women that Hermione didn't know and nodded at them. They slowly approached the mediwitch's side and smirked at Hermione. "These three will be the assistants you asked for."

"Do they have training?" She asked, becoming more and more pissed off at the situation as time went by.

"No, but they were all we could find in short notice, so deal with it." Bellatrix said to the woman while approaching Hermione and giving her a disgusted look.

"Fine, but don't blame me if something turns out to be wrong with this kid."

"You better hope nothing's wrong with this kid, because if there is the Dark Lord will have you killed before you can say avada kedavra." Lucius snapped.

The woman rolled her eyes and turned back to Hermione as she let out another scream of pain. The mediwitch checked over Hermione and then turned to one of her assistants. "Her water is broken. It could be any time now." She looked back at the people watching in the room and then seemed to notice Draco for the first time who was sitting next to Hermione. "You need to get out of here kid." She said fixing Hermione's position.

"But-"

"We need our space!" The woman yelled over Hermione's ninth contraction. "It's bad enough we have to bring a baby into this world on a dirty floor in a dungeon!"

Draco looked at Hermione and then released his hand slowly and went to stand against the wall in the back of the room, completely disagreeing with him leaving Hermione's side, especially now. She needed him more than ever. He bit his lip as he watched Hermione scream in pain, about to give birth. He ignored the strange looks his was getting from his father. He just wanted Hermione to be okay.

After an hour of screaming, deep breathing, sweat, and tears, everything got quiet, but only for a mere second. When all was quiet, the only thing that could be heard was the scream of a tiny baby. Their tiny baby.

Draco watched as the mediwitched cleaned off the child and he got his first glimpse of the baby. He got his first glimpse of her, of his daughter. A smile grew on his face and he looked at Hermione, but she wasn't smiling. She seemed to be falling asleep, but was fighting it. She was trying hard to see her child, but Bellatrix quickly came and snatched her away from the mediwitch. "No." Hermione was able to make out. "Give me… give me my baby." She said, reaching her hand out and trying to stand up, but the mediwitch quickly pushed her down.

"Your too weak to stand. You need to rest."

"I need my baby." Hermione said, eyes starting to close from exhaustion.

The mediwitch smiled at her sweetly and then told her to be quiet and rest. Draco didn't see Hermione's reaction as he was suddenly grabbed and pulled from the room by his father. "What's going on, Draco?" Lucius asked when they were out in the hallway.

"What are you talking about? I need to go see if Hermione's okay." Draco said starting to walk away, but Lucius grabbed him and pulled him back.

"That's what I'm talking about. Bellatrix may have been too dumb to see it, but I wasn't. What's going on between you and the mudblood?"

"Nothing. She was giving birth to my daughter, father. I wanted to make sure she was okay for the sake of my daughter, not for any other reason." Draco lied.

"Then how come you wanted to go see if the mudblood was okay and not your daughter?" Lucius said crossing his arms and raising an eyebrow at Draco.

Draco bit the side of his lip and exhaled a deep breath from his nose. "Where did Bellatrix take her?" Draco asked.

Lucius studied Draco, trying to decide what his deal was. "Most likely, the nursery." Lucius said, deciding it was nothing just like his son had said.

Draco nodded and slowly made his way up to the nursery to see his newborn baby. To see his daughter.

* * *

_Hey guys! _

_I hope you liked this chapter. The story is really about to unfold and the next chapter is the one that i have been looking forward to writing since i started this and figured out what i was going to make happen, so be ready._

_Please review. I would **love** to reach 100 reviews before I end this story, but only you can make that happen! If you're reading, then please review. Thanks. _


	23. twenty three: coward

_Last Chapter: Draco nodded and slowly made his way up to the nursery to see his newborn baby. To see his daughter._

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Hermione awoke with a start, the same way she had been waking up for months now. Her hands grazed over her stomach, and that's when she realized that it wasn't as big as it used to be. It was then she remembered. She had given birth, and the child was taken away from her before she could even see it. She didn't even know if it was a girl or a boy, and she figured she never would know. A tear fell down her cheek at this sudden realization.

Her eyes traveled around the room and then locked in the shadows beyond her prison bars. She could see the whites of somebody's eyes and felt her heart race when the person stepped forward.

Bellatrix was smirking at her, laughing to herself. Hermione became scared as Bellatrix stepped forward and opened up her cell, walking in and standing a few feet away from the entrance.

It was then that Hermione remembered. Bellatrix was the one who had taken her child away, and her heart suddenly filled with more hatred towards the woman standing before her and she stood up and charged at Bellatrix. Hermione was going to kill her with her bare hands if she had to.

Bellatrix's grin didn't fade as Hermione charged at her. In fact, she seemed to laugh harder now. "I'm going to kill you!" Hermione yelled, her arms reached out and hands open, ready to wrap them around the deatheaters neck, when she suddenly felt a tug on her leg and fell to the ground. She landed on her chest, hands spread out flat on the cement.

She turned around to take a look at her leg, and that's when she saw what stopped her. A chain wrapped around her ankle, keeping her just out of reach of Bellatrix. Hermione sat up and tried to undo the chain, even though she knew it was useless. She wasn't about to give up without a fight and she wasn't going down that easily. She was Hermione Granger after all.

Bellatrix laughed at her sad attempt. "It's time, mudblood." Bellatrix said taking out her wand and pointing it at Hermione.

Hermione stopped fidgeting with the chain and looked up into Bellatrix's eyes. She stood up and bit her lip, ready to fight. "You'll never kill me!" Hermione said through clenched teeth. Bellatrix laughed and Hermione suddenly felt pain shoot through her whole body. She fell to the ground and held in her scream. Bellatrix could use the cruciatus curse on her all she wanted, but she wasn't going to give her the satisfaction that she was in pain.

Hermione felt the curse lift off her, and found Bellatrix only a few inches from her. Hermione looked up into her cold eyes as Bellatrix lifted up her foot and kicked Hermione onto her back, causing her to smack her head on the concrete. Hermione winced in pain as her hands traveled up to where she had smacked her head.

Before she knew what was happening, Bellatrix was pointing her wand at Hermione and Hermione's hands were tied tightly behind her back. Bellatrix grabbed her by her hair and lifted her into the air, making Hermione stand on her feet. "Get off me." Hermione demanded, turning every which way to try and loosen Bellatrix from her tightening grip.

Bellatrix laughed a piercing laugh and Hermione felt the chain disappear from her ankle, as Bellatrix pulled her by her hair out of the cell. She was walking so fast that Hermione had to run to keep herself from falling over and just being dragged to wherever Bellatrix was taking her. "Let me go!" Hermione demanded again, still trying to fight her way out of the binding around her hands.

"Stop fighting, mudblood! You can't escape me. You're still too weak from your birth." Bellatrix said now picking up the pace and heading for the library. "How does it feel to know you're walking to your death, mudblood?" Bellatrix asked with a laugh.

"At least I'll die knowing that my killers were cowards. Only a coward would kill somebody when they're at their weakest, with no means of protecting themselves." Hermione sneered, still finding she had her Gryffindor courage inside her.

"You filthy mudblood! You'll pay for that!" Bellatrix yelled as she through Hermione against a wall and pointed her wand at her.

Hermione let out a scream as pain she had never felt before surged through her entire body. She felt like she was being electrocuted, and even though she tried to hold back her scream and stay brave, the pain was too much. "Bellatrix, stop!" Hermione suddenly felt the pain stop and she looked up at her savior, who turned out to be none other then Lucius Malfoy. He approached Bellatrix's side quickly and smirked down at Hermione, laying helplessly on the ground, then turned to his sister-in-law. "You know what the Dark Lord said."

"The Dark Lord was the one who said that _I_ would have the pleasure of taking the filthy mudblood's life."

"Yes." Lucius said turning back to Hermione. "But not yet. The Dark Lord whishes to… have a word with her first." A grin grew on his face as he picked her up by her hair and dragged her to the library just as Bellatrix had done. Hermione had never felt more frightened in her entire life.

__________________________________________

Draco had a smile on his face as he stared down at his sleeping daughter. He had one arm resting on the side of her crib and the other stroked her brown hair. He studied her features, trying to decide what belonged to him and what belonged to Hermione. Her hair color was obviously Hermione's, but the texture and type was completely different from Hermione. His daughter had pin point straight hair, just like Draco's, and looked greasy from far away, but when you got up close and touched it, was soft and fluffy.

She had tiny hands, even for a baby. They were like Hermione's. And her lips as well. For a newborn baby, her lips were full and a deep red. Her chin, however, was pointed. This was Draco's chin, no doubt about that. And her eyes. Draco had seen her eyes when she was being taken away from Hermione. They were silver, identical to Draco's.

His smiled grew as the baby stirred in the crib. He had never loved something as much as he loved this child. This child was everything to him, but so was Hermione. They were both so important to him, and Hermione was probably spending her last hour on earth, and Draco was busy hiding in the nursery, afraid to face what he started. He was a coward, and Hermione, the woman he loved, was going to die because of it.

He bit his lip as he stroked his daughter's hair. She would need a name, a real name. Not one that Voldemort would give her for whatever his sick plan would be. _Rose for a girl and Hugo for a boy. I know their strange names and seem like I just pulled them out of the blue, but I've always liked those name, ever since I was a little girl. _Hermione's words played over and over in his head. He smiled as he remembered how she blushed when he told her he liked them. He really didn't at the time, but now the names just seemed right. "It's okay, Rosie." He whispered, still stroking his daughter's hair. "Daddy's here and he's not going to let anything happen to you."

He leaned over and gave Rosie and little kiss on her forehead, and then suddenly he heard it. A scream. It was Hermione, it had to be. The scream sounded like it was coming from the room next to them, but Draco knew it wasn't. It was coming from the library, and to him, her scream was the start of the time bomb in his head.

Hermione was in so much pain, that her scream had echoed throughout the whole house. Draco bit his lip and felt his entire body fill with hatred. He was coward, but even cowards have their moments where they're bravery shines through and they become stronger then they ever thought possible. They could overcome anything or anybody. And right now, at that very moment, Draco was feeling like Hercules.

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Draco ran from the nursery and followed Hermione's screams. He still didn't have a plan, and he felt pathetic. He didn't know what he was going to do, but he knew he had to do it. He found himself sprinting towards the library, heart racing from the adrenaline and the fear that Hermione was on the brink of death.

He could see the door to the library and his pace quickened. He had never run so fast in his entire life, and felt like he was flying, like something was helping him to reach her, to save her. This filled him with hope and bravery as his hands reached the doorknobs and turned them. In what felt like slow motion to him, he through the door open, spotted Hermione laying on the ground with Bellatrix standing over her, wand pointing at her heart, ready to kill, and the other deatheaters smiling and laughing at the witch who was about to lose her life.

He knew what he had to do, and he knew the consequences would be horrific for him, but Hermione would be okay for a little bit longer, and that was all he wanted: a little bit longer.

He sprinted towards Hermione, right before the jet of green light was released from Bellatrix's wand. He yanked his wand out and jumped in front of Hermione, blocking the spell and causing it to bounce back and hit the ceiling. He stood over Hermione, wand pointing at Bellatrix, who was staring at her nephew, mouth open and speechless.

The room had gone quiet as everybody waited for somebody else to do something. Bellatrix seemed to find her voice quickly and was the first to speak. "Move out of my way, Draco!" She yelled, pointing her wand closer to Hermione.

"No!" Draco yelled, studying the faces of the other deatheaters in the room. "I love her." He said quietly, looking down at the girl who was lying behind him. He smiled at her, thinking that this would be the last time he would get to see her face smiling back up at him.

* * *

_So Draco finally has a plan, well kind of. I guess you guys will just have to wait until i upload again to see what actually is going to happen to them. But while you're wating, you could always review and let me know what you think is going to happen!_

_But anyway, I really enjoyed writing this chapter, and i hope you guys liked it! Sorry about that terrible cliffhanger! I like to leave my readers on the edge : ]_

_Remember to review! The more reviews, the faster i'll become motivated to upload really soon!_


	24. twenty four: weak and cowardly

_Last Chapter: "No!" Draco yelled, studying the faces of the other deatheaters in the room. "I love her." He said quietly, looking down at the girl who was lying behind him. He smiled at her, thinking that this would be the last time he would get to see her face smiling back up at him._

* * *

Hermione's heart raced as she watched the deatheaters in the room. Their smiles disappeared from their cheeks and the murderous looks that were in their eyes disappeared. Instead, they stared at Draco, confused as to why he was still defending her. Hermione was confused at first as well, until it dawned on her. He had never lied and he had always loved her. He had loved her so much that he jumped in front of the killing curse, with a chance that he could be hit, to save her. Nobody would do that for anybody, not unless you loved them.

"Son, you don't have to pretend anymore." Lucius said, walking over and standing next to Bellatrix.

"I'm not pretending. I never have." Draco said shaking his head slightly at his father.

The room went silent again, everybody had their eyes glued on Draco, unsure of what to do. The silence was broken suddenly by laughter. It was a piercing laughter that sent chills down Draco and Hermione's spines. It was a laughter that everybody in the room recognized. They all turned and faced Voldemort who was still sitting in his chair and staring Draco down. "Very good, Draco. I was wondering when you were going to get the courage to come and save the girl, to come to your own death. I was wondering when you were going to stop being such a coward and a weak link."

"I'm not a coward and I'm not weak!" Draco yelled, his wand now pointed at Voldemort.

Voldemort stood up and walked towards Draco slowly. "No, boy, you are." Voldemort now took out his wand and pointed it down in-between Draco's legs, right at Hermione. Hermione's heart raced as his white wand pointed at her. She scooted closer behind Draco, trying to hide her body behind his legs, even though she knew it would do no good in the long run. She wrapped her arms tightly around his leg, holding onto to him for dear life. "Would you stop me before I took the life from your precious mudblood."

"Don't call her that!" Draco yelled, his heart now beating against his chest.

"Do you have the courage to stop me before I stop her heart from beating?" Voldemort said, now moving closer.

"Yes!" Draco lied. He couldn't kill anybody, it wasn't in his nature. Voldemort laughed, seeing right through him.

"Then do it, boy! Kill me!" Voldemort yelled, stopping when he was a good distance away from him. "Crucio!" He yelled pointing his wand at Hermione. She screamed in pain as her grip was released from Draco's legs and she fell to the floor, shaking.

Draco pointed his wand at Voldemort and yelled the first spell that came to mind as fast as he could. "Stupefy!"

His spell was quickly blocked by Bellatrix's spell, sending Draco's curse right back at him. It smacked Draco in the chest and he was knocked on top of Hermione who was still screaming.

He threw his legs off of Hermione and quickly searched for his wand that had fallen from his hand when he hit the ground. He went to stand up but felt his feet lift off the ground and his body fly against one of the bookshelves. He stayed in midair, back pressed against the bookshelf, and completely frozen and unable to move a muscle. He watched in horror as Bellatrix walked over and picked Hermione up by her hair, forcing her to stand and face Voldemort. Draco could tell Hermione was trying to stay calm and brave, but all that disappeared as Voldemort ran his wand through her brown curls. She closed her eyes and bit her lip, her chest raising and falling as her heart beat quickened. "Who should I kill first, mudblood? You or the blood traitor?" He said looking at Draco for a brief moment and then turning back to Hermione with a grin on his face.

"You're not going to get away with this." Hermione managed to say with closed teeth.

"Do you still really believe that Potter is going to save you?" Hermione didn't answer as Voldemort laughed slightly again. "Will he save you from this?" Voldemort asked sending the cruciatus curse through her body again. Bellatrix released Hermione as she fell to her knees, trying her best not to give him the satisfaction. But holding back only made this worse, and Hermione was forced to let out a piercing scream that only caused the deatheaters in the room to laugh.

"No!" Draco yelled. "Stop!" He tried to loosen himself from the shelf, but couldn't. The spell was too strong, and he found tears coming to his eyes as Hermione continued to scream. "Please! Take me instead! Don't hurt her!"

Hermione's screams stopped along with the curse at Draco's words. Bellatrix grabbed Hermione by her hair again as Voldemort walked over towards Draco, a smirk growing on his face. "What's the matter boy? Are you too weak to watch her die? Do you not have the courage to face the fact that all of this is your fault?"

"I'm not weak, I'm in love." Draco said, eyes filled with hatred.

"Being in love makes you weak boy, and it takes innocent hearts as well. It breaks them."

"If you think being in love makes you weak, then you have never felt love. And if you have never felt love, then you're the weak one, and I feel sorry for you. You'll never know what it's like to look into somebody's eyes and know that this one person can change your life forever. And my life has been changed forever, and whether I'm going to die tonight or not, at least I know that I'm going to spend the rest of my life next to the person that I love, and that fact only makes me stronger while you grow weaker." With Draco's statement, Voldemort's smirk faded and the spell that was holding Draco into the air was released.

Voldemort gestured for one for one of his deatheaters to come and he happily took hold of Draco. Voldemort made his way back towards the center of the room, where Hermione was standing and turned to Bellatrix then to the deatheater carrying Draco. "Take these two… love birds down to the dungeons where they can say their goodbye's to each other."

"Yes My Lord." Bellatrix said as she dragged Hermione down to the dungeons, followed closely by the deatheater pulling Draco along. Hermione and Draco looked into each other's eyes and knew that the time they had left together was quickly running out.

* * *

_So my laptop is currently not getting any internet access, so i had to go through the hardest time to just get this chapter onto the family computer. Hopefully my internet will fix itself out soon, since there is nothing i can do about it, so i won't have to go through all this trouble again because honestly, it was a lot of work for a chapter. _

_Review please! And pray that my laptop will work so i won't have to go through all this trouble again!_


	25. twenty five: growing on me

_Last Chapter: "Yes My Lord." Bellatrix said as she dragged Hermione down to the dungeons, followed closely by the deatheater pulling Draco along. Hermione and Draco looked into each other's eyes and knew that the time they had left together was quickly running out._

* * *

Hermione and Draco were thrown in Hermione's cell like Voldemort ordered. The only difference was, Draco was now chained to the wall by his ankle like Hermione was before. When Bellatrix and the deatheater left, Hermioen ran over to Draco and wrapped him in a tight embrace. She gave him a quick kiss on the cheek as he wrapped his arms around her in a bear hug. "You saved my life." She said, tearing now pouring down her cheeks.

"Not yet I didn't." Draco said as they released their hug but held each other's hands tightly. Hermione sat down next to him on the floor and leaned her head on his shoulder and closed her eyes. He took his free hand and wrapped it around her shoulder, pulling her closer to him, and giving her a kiss on the top of her head and then resting his cheeks on the spot he kissed.

"I'm sorry." Hermione said quietly as she placed her free hand on Draco's leg and looked up into his eyes.

Draco smiled and gave her a long kiss on the lips. "What are you apologizing for?" He asked when he released the kiss.

"For not believing you." She said smiling.

He laughed slightly and gave her another kiss. "I deserved every glare you gave me and every name you called me." He kissed her nose and rested his forehead against hers. "It's my entire fault we're in this situation." He said as his smile faded.

Hermione looked down at the ground and bit her lip. "Don't worry. We'll get out of this."

"How?" Draco asked.

"Harry and Ron."

"Hermione…"

"No, Draco. They're coming. I know they are." She turned her glance from the floor and looked towards the bars of her and now, Draco's cell. She smiled slightly as she imagined her best friends smiling back at her and rescuing her and Draco from their prison. "I know they are." She said again, almost in a whisper. She rested her head on Draco's shoulder again and didn't take her eyes off the bars.

_------------------------------_

Harry slammed his fist down on the table in frustration. "Harry, relax." Ron said quietly, watching his best friend grow more and more impatient as the days passed without any word from Hermione.

"How can I relax Ron? Hermione's gone and I can't help but think that it's all our fault." Harry said standing up and walking over to the kitchen window in the burrow. He stared out on the full moon just like the night when he realized how stupid him and Ron had been to let Hermione go without a friend in the world.

"Because it's not our fault." Ron said tapping his fingers on the table and staring in the opposite direction of Harry. He too was frustrated, but didn't want to show it. He was trying to stay calm for the sake of Harry and for the sake of the rest of the people in the burrow. They still didn't know that Hermione was missing, and him and Harry weren't planning on telling them anytime soon. They were already worried about the war with Voldemort, and telling them about Hermione would only make things 20 times worse.

"No Ron, it is. If we never ignored her just because she was pregnant, then she wouldn't of ran away or gotten herself in trouble. It's _all_ our fault." Harry ran his hand through his hair and exhaled a deep breath.

"Well if Malfoy hadn't gotten her knocked up then we wouldn't have gotten mad at her and ignored her." Ron said matter–of-factly. Harry's eyes got big as an invisible light bulb popped over his head. He turned around quickly and ran at the table. He through the palm of his hands down on the table across from Ron and stared at Ron with a huge smile on his face. Ron raised an eye brow and looked at Harry like he was crazy. "What the bloody hell-"

"What did you just say Ron!" Harry demanded, slapping his right hand down on the table.

"I said that if Malfoy hadn't gotten her knocked up then-"

"Malfoy!" Harry yelled, eyes becoming bigger with realization. "Malfoy has Hermione!"

Ron's mouth opened in shock and embarrassment that they weren't smart enough to figure this out earlier. "Bloody hell."

"It makes so much sense!" Harry yelled, running into the Weasley's living room and grabbing his broom off of the floor with Ron at his heel.

"Harry? What are you doing?"

Harry turned to Ron and checked to make sure he had his wand. "Hermione was pregnant with Malfoy's kid. She was due in the beginning of September, so he would have taken her so he could be with her when she gave birth to his kid. With the Malfoy's being so close to Voldemort and having so much money, they wouldn't have gone to St. Mungos. There's only one place that Malfoy would have allowed Hermione to have his child."

"The Malfoy Manor." Ron finished, finally understanding. Harry nodded and licked his lips. "But Harry… how are you going to get there? Neither of us knows where Malfoy Manor is, so we can't apparate there or near the spot, and the floo network will be blocked off."

Harry bit the side of his lip and looked around the room. He had jumped to conclusions and hadn't thought about how he was going to get to Malfoy Manor. He had become so excited about realizing where Hermione was that he never thought about how he was going to get to this place that was blocked off. "A phone book." Harry said to himself.

"What?" Ron asked, hearing what he said but not knowing what a phone book was.

Harry turned back to Ron, hoping. "Muggles use this thing called phone books to find address and telephone numbers of people that they know the names of but don't know anything else." Ron nodded, understanding Harry's explanation but not knowing how this could help them. "Is there anything in the wizarding world that likes that? Anywhere we can find out the location of the Malfoy Manor?"

Ron said down on the couch and thought for a moment. "If there was, it would be in the ministry of magic."

Harry smiled at Ron. "I think it's time we pay them a visit, don't you think?"

----------------------

"Draco." Hermione said quietly, keeping her eyes closed as she woke up from the small nap she had taken in the arms of the man she loved.

"Hmm." He responded, still half asleep.

"What does our child look like?"

Hermione could feel Draco's smile as he exhaled a deep breath and took his head off the top of hers. She turned and looked at him. "She's beautiful."

"She? I have a daughter?" Hermione asked as a smile grew on her face.

"We have a daughter."

"What does she look like?"

"She looks like you." Draco said giving her a kiss. "She has your brown hair, only it's straight. Not a curl in sight." Draco said running his fingers through Hermione's hair. "And she has tiny hands, really tiny hands." Draco placed his hands down on her right hand and moved his index finger in circles on Hermione's palm. Hermione smiled and gave Draco a kiss. "She has your lips too. They're big and red… and beautiful." Hermione blushed as Draco ran his thumb down Hermione's cheek.

"And what about you? I'm sure she has some of your features as well." Hermione said placing her head back in the comfortable spot on Draco's shoulder.

"She has my eyes. They're silver as can be. And my chin." Draco said the last part quickly, knowing that a chin wasn't really an important feature.

Hermione giggled to herself as she recognized how he wasn't proud of this feature. She looked up at him with her head still resting on his shoulder. "I'm sure it's a beautiful chin." Draco smiled back and gave her a kiss.

"Her name is Rose." Draco said when he released the kiss. Hermione's face froze for a second as she stared into Draco's eyes, then a small smile appeared.

"You named her Rose?"

Draco nodded. "I remember you told me that you liked that name. Rose and Hugo." Hermione's smile grew. "I think it's growing on me." He said as Hermione placed her hands on Draco's cheeks and gave him a kiss, parting his lips. He massaged the top of her mouth with his tongue as his hands made their way down to her waist. Hermione pulled Draco's head further and lost her balance, falling with her back on the cold cement. Her and Draco's lip stayed attached the entire fall, and didn't stop until they heard somebody clear their throat.

Hermione and Draco turned their attention to the bars and saw Bellatrix and the same deatheater from before standing there and staring at them. "Sorry to break up your disgusting exchange of saliva." Bellatrix said opening the door and walking towards them with the deatheater close behind, not a pinch of apology in her tone of voice.

"What do you want?" Draco asked, standing up and stepping in front of Hermione. She stood up too, but stayed behind Draco. She grabbed his hand from behind and placed her other hand on his shoulder. Her heart was racing and she knew Draco's was too. The question he asked was an obvious one, and they both already knew the answer. They had had enough time together in the eyes of Voldemort, but to them, they would never have enough time together.

Bellatrix nodded at the other deatheater and he walked towards Hermione and grabbed her arm, pulling her towards him. Draco reacted quickly, grabbing Hermione back and pushed the deatheater back and into the wall. Bellatrix pulled out her wand and pointed it at Draco. Draco felt pain shoot though his entire body and he fell to the ground screaming. Hermione bent down on her knees and wrapped herself around him. "Draco. It's okay. Stay strong." She whispered in his ear.

Hermione let out a scream as she felt the deatheater grab her and pull her towards Bellatrix. Bellatrix took the spell off Draco as she locked the cell door, leaving Draco in the prison all by himself. Draco ran at the door, reaching for Hermione, but the chain wrapped around his ankle threw him to the ground. He wacked his head on the cement and felt himself going dizzy, about to be knocked out from the impact. He raised his head and watched as the deatheater carried a screaming Hermione down the hall and a laughing Bellatrix staring at him. "If something happens to her-" Draco said, barely able to speak.

Bellatrix laughed even harder. "What are _you_ going to do about it?" Draco gulped as his eyes closed and his head fell to the floor, knocked completely unconscious.

* * *

_Thank you to all the people who crossed their fingers about my laptop. The internet is currently working again (knocks on wood), so i decided that i was going to dedicate this chapter to the people who crossed their fingers.  
__I also decided to upload quickly and write a long chapter before it disconnected again. I hope you liked it. It's one of my favorites. __It's about to get a million times better in the next couple of chapters and also Voldy's plan will be revealed! I know some of you are anxious to know what it is. _

_I also wanted to say that this story is about to come to an end within a few chapters. I'm sorry to say this, especially if you're enjoying it, but I'm hoping that you'll read the next story i have in mind. Not to sure on the title yet, but i should be uploading the first chapter soon, and i hope that all of you will go and read it, because quite frankly, you guys are amazing readers and i would love for you to be with me on my next story as well!_

_But let's not worry about that yet. Please review! I'm so anxious to hear what you guys have to say and what you think Voldemort's plan will be for Rosie! _


	26. twenty six: what use

_Last Chapter: Hermione let out a scream as she felt the deatheater grab her and pull her towards Bellatrix. Bellatrix took the spell off Draco as she locked the cell door, leaving Draco in the prison all by himself. Draco ran at the door, reaching for Hermione, but the chain wrapped around his ankle threw him to the ground. He wacked his head on the cement and felt himself going dizzy, about to be knocked out from the impact. He raised his head and watched as the deatheater carried a screaming Hermione down the hall and a laughing Bellatrix staring at him. "If something happens to her-" Draco said, barely able to speak._

_Bellatrix laughed even harder. "What are you going to do about it?" Draco gulped as his eyes closed and his head fell to the floor, knocked completely unconscious._

* * *

Hermione screamed and fought the entire time the deatheater carried her back up to the library. This time she knew she was going to her death unless, by some miracle, Harry and Ron had decided to forgive her and found out where she was and that she needed rescuing. Even though she told herself that all this was true and that they were on their way to come and rescue her as she was dragged by her hair to her death, she knew that the probability was very slim. "Just you wait till I get a wand! I'm going to personally erase you from this earth!" Hermione yelled at the deatheater. He just smirked down at her and pulled harder on her hair, causing her to scream even more.

When they reached the front entrance to the library, Bellatrix knocked three times and the doors opened automatically within seconds of her knock. Hermione continued to fight and scream, but stopped when she heard a baby crying. She turned her head from side to side, searching for the only baby she knew to be in the house, and this baby just happened to be her baby, her daughter, her Rose.

The deatheater threw Hermione down on the ground and she quickly stood back up and searched the room. Her eyes locked when she saw her daughter being held by Voldemort. Her heart dropped when she saw the tears falling from the newborn and the terrified screams that came from her mouth.

Voldemort stood up and took a couple steps towards Hermione, holding Rose in one arm and pointing his other wand at Hermione. Hermione closed her eyes and bit her lower lip, shaking her head not believing that this was happening to her. Voldemort laughed at her sudden look of defeat. "Have you finally come to the realization that you have lost, mudblood."

Hermione opened her eyes and glared at Voldemort, then her eyes traveled to Rose. Voldemort grabbed Rose by her arm and held her in the air, taking a look at her. Rose screamed in pain and Hermione fought the urge to run at him and snatch her daughter from his grip. "Please stop! You're hurting her!"

Voldemort turned his head towards Hermione and handed the baby off to the deatheater next to him, who just happened to be Lucius Malfoy. Hermione watched as Lucius took Rose in both of his arms and stared at her, an unidentified look in his eye.

Voldemort took a step closer to Hermione and started to walk in circles around her. She stood in one spot, but her eyes never left him. She stood strong, her fist clenched, ready for anything. She knew she was going to die, but she was going to take down whoever she could with her. How, she didn't know, but she would find away. She was the smartest witch of her age after all. "You're going to die. You and young mister Malfoy are going to die." Voldemort said with a smirk growing on his face. "He admitted that he loved you. But you… never said a thing." Hermione licked her lips and clenched her fist tighter, turning his knuckles white. "Do you love him, mudblood?"

Hermione had expected this question, and was already ready with her answer. "Yes." She answer loudly, her teeth clenched together.

"So you would do anything to lengthen his life, correct?"

"Yes." Hermione snapped back, teeth still clenched together.

Voldemorts smirk grew as he stopped walking around Hermione when he reached the front of her. "How about your child?"

Hermione shook her head to the thought of her child dying, a child that didn't even spend 24 hours out of the womb. "Please don't hurt her." Hermione found herself begging again. "She's just a baby! She has done nothing wrong! She's innocent! She doesn't deserve to die." Hermione found herself saying the last part in a whisper, almost to herself. She lowered her head to the ground in shame. It was true, but she knew that Voldemort wouldn't see it that way. In his eyes, Rose was the offspring of a mudblood, and deserved to die for that reason and that reason alone.

"She's not going to die, at least not on my accord." Hermione shot her head up when the words escaped his mouth.

"Wha-"

"Bring Malfoy up from the dungeons!" Voldemort barked at one of his deatheaters, then turned back to Hermione. "We wouldn't want him to miss out on all the fun, now would we?" And with his question he sent the cruciatus curse throughout Hermione's entire body, sending her to the ground and screaming in pain.

Nobody noticed when Narcissa Malfoy slipped out the door quietly behind the deatheater forced to fetch her son.

--------------------------

Draco awoke with a start when he heard Hermione scream. He stood up and looked up at the ceiling. "Hermione!" He yelled, whishing he wasn't left in the dark. Almost on quo, a deatheater approached the bars of his cell and pointed his wand at Draco. He opened the door to the cell, not taking his eyes off Draco and stepped in. He grabbed Draco around the arm and pulled him out of the cell, his wand now jabbing into the side of his throat.

Draco sneered at the deatheater as he was pushed up to the library. They reached the doors and as soon as they opened, Hermione let out another scream. Draco tore from the deatheaters grip and ran towards Hermione. He knelt down besides her and held her hand tightly, staring up at Voldemort. "Stop! You're hurting her!"

Voldemort laughed. "That's the point of the cruciatus curse boy!" He released the spell from Hermione. With his wand still pointed at her, he lifted it into the air, causing Hermione to rise to her feet. He then flicked his wand at the deatheaters standing in a corner and Hermione flew into their arms. They smirked and put their hands on her while she tried to fight out of their touch. Draco went to run and set her free when he felt his whole body freeze up and he fell to the ground. He laid there for only an instant, then felt himself lift up into the air just like Hermione had

His body was moved to the center of the circle again where he was dropped to the ground. "Foolish boy." Voldemort said, sending the cruciatus curse through his entire body. "If only you followed the plan. If only you didn't fall in love with some foolish mudblood."

Draco screamed in pain as blood started to come from his nose and he started to lose consciousness, or was it his life. "Stop it! You're killing him!" Hermione screamed.

Voldemort let the curse go on for a few more seconds, then removed it. Voldemort walked over towards Lucius and then took Rosie from his arms. He walked back over to Draco and set the baby down on the floor in front of him. Draco stared at the baby with tear stained eyes and brown straight hair. He wanted to reach for his daughter, to hold her and tell her everything would be okay, but he could barely move. He felt like if he did, his last breath would leave him, and he couldn't do that. He had to survive, that was his plan. It had been his plan from the very beginning, even before they had come to the manner, and he just didn't realize it until now.

"Sit up!" Voldemort yelled at Draco, obviously pissed that he didn't reach for his child like he had thought he would. Draco put his palm flat on the ground and tried to push his body up, but found himself too weak, and only fell right back down to the ground. "Sit up!" He ordered again. Draco didn't move because he knew he couldn't and it would only make him weaker. Draco felt the cruciatus curse on him again and he screamed in pain, only causing Rosie to cry out as well.

When the curse was lifted off of Draco, he stared at the crying baby lying on her back on the library floor. He knew she was scared, and this gave him the strength, courage, and fatherly instinct to reach for his child. He sat up and reached for Rosie, holding her in his arms and rocking her back and forth, trying to calm her crying. Draco took a quick glance at Hermione and saw that she was staring at him with tears pouring down her eyes, scared for his death and her daughters. Draco turned to Voldemort. "Why are you doing this?" He asked over Rosie's screams that had seemed to come to a minimum now. "What use could you possibly have for a baby?" Draco asked.

Everybody in the room turned to Voldemort, all awaiting this million dollar question.

* * *

_wow, that was a mean cliffhanger! prob the meanest one yet. i almost didnt do it, but then i decided to leave you guys on the edge of you seats!_

_ill try my hardest to upload another chapter before work tomorrow. no promises though! but don't worry, there will be another chapter up within 24 hours. that i can promise!_

_review!_


	27. twenty seven: your turn

_Last Chapter: When the curse was lifted off of Draco, he stared at the crying baby lying on her back on the library floor. He knew she was scared, and this gave him the strength, courage, and fatherly instinct to reach for his child. He sat up and reached for Rosie, holding her in his arms and rocking her back and forth, trying to calm her crying. Draco took a quick glance at Hermione and saw that she was staring at him with tears pouring down her eyes, scared for his death and her daughters. Draco turned to Voldemort. "Why are you doing this?" He asked over Rosie's screams that had seemed to come to a minimum now. "What use could you possibly have for a baby?" Draco asked._

_Everybody in the room turned to Voldemort, all awaiting this million dollar question._

_

* * *

_

Voldemort walked closer to Draco until he was only mere feet from him and turned all his attention on Rose. Draco tightened his grip on his daughter. He had no intentions of handing her over to him. After staring at Rosie for a few moments, Voldemort slid past Draco and Rosie and went to the back of the room to where Hermione was standing. Draco turned his head and watched as Voldemort dragged his wand through Hermione's curly hair. Hermione closed her eyes and turned her head in the other direction, trying hard to ignore him.

"Beautiful things horcruxes." Voldemort said quietly, turning back and walking towards Draco again. Draco turned his attention back to Rosie who was wrapping her tiny cold fingers around his thumb. "Tell me, mudblood, would Potter be able to kill a living thing? Would he be able to kill a living thing that belongs to his best mudblood friend?"

"If you're suggesting that Harry would kill my daughter, then you're mistaken." Hermione said through clenched teeth. "Harry would never kill a baby! He's not like you! He has a heart!"

With this comment Voldemort sent the cruciatus through Hermione's body. Draco had had enough of this torture. He was a dead man anyway, why not go down fighting. He placed Rosie down on the ground gently and then with all his strength stood up. With Voldemort having his back turned to Draco, Draco ran at him with his arms reached out to strangle the man he once thought was brilliant. Right before he was about to reach him, he was hit by a spell and was sent flying against one of the bookcases, knocking it over and sending it, along with all the books, falling on top of Draco.

Draco through his hands over his head as he curled his legs up against his chest, ready for the impact. When the heavy books hit him, he could feel his bones breaking, but when the bookcase fell on top of him, one of the wooden planks that made up a shelf hit him in the chest, knocking the air out of him and keeping pressure on his lungs. He could barely breathe and before long he was knocked unconscious from lack of air. If he didn't get out from under the books soon, they would become his tomb.

When Draco hit the bookcase, Voldemort had drawn his attention to Draco, causing the curse to be lifted off of Hermione, but she still screamed. "Draco!" She yelled trying to break free from the deatheaters grip to go and help Draco. "Let me go!"

Voldemort turned to the deatheater who had casted the spell at Draco, then understanding what had happened turned back to Hermione. He smirked and nodded at the deatheaters holding her. They released her and she immediately ran for the bookshelf. She tried to lift it up but found that it was too heavy and she was still too weak. She cried out at the thought that he could be dying or already dead and nobody cared enough to do anything, not even his father. "Please help me! Somebody!" She yelled still trying to get the bookcase off Draco's body.

"Nobody is going to help you, mudblood. Don't you understand that this was meant to happen, he was meant to die?" Voldemort said approaching Rose who was lying on the ground looking around confused.

Hermione turned to Lucius. "How can you just stand there?" She asked him. "He's your son! You're letting him kill your son!"

"Draco is not my son." Lucius sneered, even though it looked like it hurt him to say it. "No son of mine would betray his side."

Hermione shook her head and turned back to the bookcase. Instead of trying to lift the case off of him, she turned to the books that surrounded him. She started to remove some of the heavy ones and could see Draco's hand when she found herself being grabbed again. "NO!" She yelled, pushing and kicking to get back to Draco. Her fighting came to a complete stop when she saw Voldemort pick Rosie up from the floor. "Please." Hermione begged quietly. "Please don't hurt her."

Voldemort laughed. "I have no intentions of hurting her. I already told you that."

"Then why are you doing this!"

Voldemort looked at the scared baby in his hand and then turned back to Hermione. "Do you know what a horcrux is, mudblood?"

Hermione bit her lip, not wanting to answer but knowing she had no choice. "It's a receptacle in which a witch or wizard has hidden part of his or her soul to obtain immortality. They remain immortal until the horcrux is destroyed."

"And do you know how this happens?" Voldemort asked with a smirk on his face, awaiting her answer that sounded like it was coming right from a book.

Hermione licked her lips and gulped. "Murder. Murder is the supreme act of evil and rips the soul apart and into the horcrux."

"I'll ask my question from before. Would Potter be able to kill a living thing, especially one that belongs to his best mudblood friend?" Voldemort smirked and turned to Lucius. He handed Rosie to him and turned back to Hermione. "Would Potter be able to kill your daughter?"

"You wouldn't!" Hermione screamed, trying to break free from the grip of the round man holding her.

"Potter can't kill." Voldemort said now talking to everybody in the room. "Especially a baby that belongs to his best friend. By making the baby a horcrux of mine, on the slim chance that 'the great Harry Potter' does succeed in killing my body, part of my soul will live on in the offspring of his best friend. I will be able to return because the boy will be too weak to kill."

"Not being able to kill somebody doesn't make you weak." Hermione snapped, now full of anger. "It makes you strong. It makes _him_ something that _you_ could only dream of being:… human."

Voldemort laughed to himself and then took a couple of steps closer to Hermione. He turned and faced Rose, still standing only feet from Hermione. He used his wand to remove her from Lucius's grip and placed her back on the floor. He turned back to Hermione. "I was going to kill you first, but now I think I'll let you suffer longer. You can watch as your daughter becomes my ninth horcrux."

Hermione watched in fear as Voldemort walked over to the bookcase that covered Draco. This was it. He was going to kill Draco for the murder of his horcrux. Hermione bit her lip and watched her daughter, waiting. She couldn't stand to watch, especially since she knew that it was going to happen. It was going to happen and there was going to be nothing that she could do about it except watch helplessly from the sidelines.

Voldemort pointed his wand at the hand that Hermione had revealed earlier from under the books. She watched as if everything was in slow motion. She watched Voldemort open his lips, ready to say the curse that would kill the man she loved, she watched as he suddenly turned and pointed his wand as Lucius, and she watched as the green spell shot from his wand and smacked Lucius right in the chest, she watched as the light left his eyes, and she watched as he fell to the ground, lifeless.

She stared with her mouth gaped open as a wave seemed to come from Lucius's body and hit Voldemort. He put his hands out to the side and inhaled a deep breath, closing his eyes. After a few seconds, he put his hands down, opened his eyes, and released a deep breath. With his deep breath being released from his nostrils, a white smoke seemed to emerge as well. It traveled over to Rose and wrapped hitself around her. Hermione let tears fall down her cheeks as her daughter was lifted into the air and the smoke seemed to absorb into her skin. Hermione closed her eyes and shook her head, not believing what was happening to her.

She opened her eyes when she heard Voldemort laugh. She watched as he slowly approached her, wand pointing at her chest. "Your turn." He said through clenched teeth.

Hermione closed her eyes, ready for anything, even death.

She opened her eyes suddenly when the voice of a familiar brown haired boy filled the room. "No, it's your turn!"

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_So good news! Well actually its great news. First of all, the credit for Voldemort's idea can't go to me. One of my brilliant readers came up with this brilliant idea and kindly allowed me to use it. So all of you can thank riahana175 (along with myself) for the AMAZING idea! THANK YOU! This chapter was dedicated to you, btw. Not only for your idea, but also for sticking with this story from the begining and leaving me the longest reviews ever!_

_Now for the really great news! I know i originally told everybody that there was only going to be a couple more chapters of this story. That has now changed. With the idea i had for Voldemort's plan originally, i had no way of continuing on without it being totally boring! But now that riahana175 has given me the great idea, i can continue! This story could have a million chapters for all i know (though i doubt it lol). So now, you can all be happy and leave more and more reviews telling me how happy you are that i'm going to keep going with this. _

_But i hope you liked the chapter as much as i did and i'm sorry about Lucius if any of you liked him. Don't worry more about him is going to be mentioned in the next chapter and it's all going to make sense. Thoughts on Draco? Is he dead or alive under the bookcase? How did Harry and Ron get it? What happened to Narcissa last chapter when she snuck out of the room? Let me know! You guys know i love your input!_


	28. twenty eight: setting into reality

_hey guys. something i just wanted to point out real quick. last chapter i said the familiar boy with the "brown hair". its supposed to be "black hair". Sorry about that! _

_Last Chapter: Hermione closed her eyes, ready for anything, even death._

_She opened her eyes suddenly when the voice of a familiar black haired boy filled the room. "No, it's your turn!"_

Voldemort turned around with a smirk on his face and faced the black haired boy. The smirk disappeared quickly when the entire room was filled with white light. The deatheaters holding Hermione dropped her to the ground and she quckly crawled over to where she knew Rose was. She held Rose tight against her as the baby screamed, trying to calm her down. Hermione watched as the white lights that seemed to be flying all around the room landed on the floor. She smiled as she watched Lupin, Moody, Dumbledore, Hestia Jones, Kingsley, Tonks, Emmeline Vance, and Mr. Weasley all appeared from the white light and started firing spells the second they became visible.

Hermione screamed as a spell almost hit her and she decided that she needed to get out of the middle of the battle. She stood up and held Rose against her chest, covering the back of her head with her hand. Staying low to the ground, she made her way in-between the battles and found her way over to the bookcase that still covered Draco. As she reached the bookcase, she felt a hand grab her shoulder and she screamed, turning around and waiting for a deatheater to grab her and the baby, but to her relief she saw the smile and concerned look of a familiar friend, a red haired boy.

"Hermione, we have to go!" Ron yelled over the screams and spells being cast all around them.

"I can't Ron!" Hermione yelled back. "I need to save Draco."

"Hermione we don't-"

"I'm not leaving without him!"

Ron rolled his eyes but then realized that this wasn't the time or the play to have an argument. "Where is he?"

Hermione pointed under the books. "I can't get him out! I already tried!"

"I'll do it!" Ron stepped forward and pulled some of the books out from on top of Draco. Hermione watched in horror as one of the deatheaters spotted what they were doing and came forward with his wand outstretched.

"Ron give me your wand!" Hermione yelled. Ron turned and saw the deatheater approaching. He quickly pulled the wand out of his pocket and handed it to Hermione. As the deatheater approached, she recognized who it was. She held Ron's wand out in front of her, holding Rose in her other hand. "Remember when I told you I would personally erase you from this earth when I got a wand?!" She yelled at the deatheater who had carried her to the dungeons by her hair on several occasions. The deatheaters smirk faded as he remembered her threat. "Well look who has a wand now!" She yelled waving the wand at him. He lifted his wand to curse her but Hermione was quicker. She quickly flicked Ron's wand in his direction and yelled; "Stupefy!" The deatheater had no time to react and was sent flying out of one of the windows and out of sight.

Hermione turned back to Ron and watched as he through the bookcase to the side and started to throw all the books off of him. When Draco was uncovered she ran over and knelt down next to him. She handed Ron back his wand and grabbed Draco's hand, putting her ear next to his mouth to listen for breathing. "He's breathing, but not much!" Hermione yelled up to Ron who was watching over them and their surroundings for any spells, or deatheater, that found their way out of a duel.

"Hermione! We have to go!" Ron yelled become impatient and worried that something might happen to them.

Hermione ignored him and started to do the first thing that came to her mind. She placed her fingers on Draco's nose and closed his nostrils. She then lowered her lips to his and breathed a deep breath into his lungs. She did it a couple of times until Draco's eyes opened. Hermione released her lips only for Draco to push his right back into hers in a deep, longing kiss. They released the kiss and Draco sat up, running his hand through her hair. He didn't seem to notice the battle going on around them until he heard Ron speak.

"Hermione come on!"

Hermione stood up and held her hand for Draco to take. He took it and as he stood up he winced in pain at his broken ribs and had to limp on his broken leg. "Ron, help us!" Hermione yelled. Ron walked over and took Draco's arm around his shoulder. He handed his wand to Hermione and told her to get out.

Hermione headed for the door and stopped when she saw Harry battling two deatheaters at once. "Harry!" She yelled. With Hermione's hand still tightly wrapped around Ron's wand, she casted a quick stupefy at one of the deatheaters as Harry knocked the other one out. Hermione grabbed Harry's hand and they ran from the room as quick as possible, leaving every member of the order to stay behind and fight.

Right before they reached the door, Draco stopped limping and stared down at the dead lifeless body of his father. His mouth opened as a tear fell down his cheek. Hermione noticed and grabbed his hand. He turned to her as more tears fell down his cheek. "Draco… we have to go." Hermione said softly, dragging him along with Ron's help.

Once they made it safely out of the room they stopped and stared down the hallways, trying to decide which way to go. "How did you get in here?" Hermione asked wondering how they were going to get out.

"We'll tell you later." Harry said trying to decide which way to go.

"Well can't we go out the same way you came in?" Hermione asked turning around and making sure nobody was coming after them.

"We had help." Ron stated.

"Go right." Draco said quietly, the death of his father taking a toll on him. "It'll lead you to the main stairway and then to the front door.

Harry nodded and then quickly started to walk to the right, but had to stop when he noticed how slowly Ron was carrying Draco. He quickly took Draco's other arm around his shoulder and Ron and Harry carried him down the hallway with Hermione in the lead. They made it to the stairway and sprinted down and out of the door, out to face the horrible reality that would soon set in.

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_Wow so its super short and im super sorry! i have work early tomorrow morning so i have to go to sleep early or else i'll never wake up. i still wanted to give you guys a chapter adn i'm afraid this is all i could get in the short amount of time i had. but not to worry, the next chapter will make up for it, promise! lots and lots of drama comming!_

_ps. REVIEW PLEASE_

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	29. twenty nine: choices

_This chapter is dedicated to sabatogeme. This is your birthday present from me. HAPPY BIRTHDAY!_

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_Last Chapter: Harry nodded and then quickly started to walk to the right, but had to stop when he noticed how slowly Ron was carrying Draco. He quickly took Draco's other arm around his shoulder and Ron and Harry carried him down the hallway with Hermione in the lead. They made it to the stairway and sprinted down and out of the door, out to face the horrible reality that would soon set in. __

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_

They made their way outside and ran into the forest that was behind the Malfoy Manor. They didn't stop running until they were about a mile into the forest, where they found a lake and a tree that was knocked down and laid across the cold wet dirt of the forest floor. Hermione was reminded right away of the forbidden forest, only she knew this one couldn't be as bad.

Hermione watched as Ron and Harry lowered Draco onto the fallen tree and leaned against other trees still standing to catch their breath and relax their muscles from the long run with Draco on their backs. She caught her breathe as she tried to calm down Rosie, who was now screaming and crying from being shook while they sprinted from the house. After a few minutes, Rosie finally calmed down.

Hermione noticed that she still had Ron's wand in her hand and she quickly turned a log into a bassinet for Rosie. She sat down next to Draco on the log and pulled the bassinet close to her knees and placed Rosie inside. Rosie instantly stopped sobbing and fell into a deep sleep. Hermione turned to Draco and saw that he was staring at the ground, eyes focused on a pebble. "Draco?" Hermione asked calmly, taking his ice cold hand into hers.

He licked his lips and then slowly turned his head to look at Hermione. His eyes were stained with tears and his cheeks were still soaked with them. Hermione slowly wrapped her arms around Draco's neck in a tight embrace and he wrapped his around her waist. When he tightened his grip, Hermione could hear him crying in her ear. Her eyes suddenly filled with tears at the thought of the emotional pain he must be going through. She quickly fought back the tears, knowing that she had to be strong. Now was not a time for weakness.

Draco loosened his grip and Hermione loosened hers as well, but she took her hand and placed it on the side of his cheek comfortingly. "What happened to him?" Draco asked, now looking down at his hands that rested in Hermione's lap.

Hermione gulped and licked her lips, unsure of how to break this information to him. How do you tell somebody that their father died so their daughter could become a horcrux of the man who he had looked up to and had grown up thinking he was what was best for the wizarding world. "He was killed." Hermione said quietly.

Draco looked up at her as another tear fell from his cheek. Hermione quickly whipped it away and bit her lips together. "Who?"

"Voldemort." She said quieter than before. Draco shook his head and closed his eyes as Hermione turned and looked at Harry and Ron. They were now watching Draco. Even though they hated the guy, they couldn't help but feel bad for him. His father had been murdered and he wasn't there to see it, to help, to stop it from happening.

Hermione turned back and looked at Draco as soon as he was opening his eyes. He looked at Hermione with hatred and murder in them, although they weren't meant for her. "I'm going to kill him." Draco said through clenched teeth. "I'm going to kill him!" Draco repeated, this time yelling at the top of his lungs.

"Draco… shh." Hermione said as she ran a hand down Draco's arm and grabbed his hand. Hermione turned and saw Rosie stirring in her bed, but then quickly went back to sleep once no more noise was made. "Draco I know you're mad, but you can't go back there."

"Why not?" Draco snapped, anger pulsating through every vein in his body.

"Because they'll outnumber you and kill you."

"I'm ready to die." Draco said standing up and starting to walk back towards his mansion.

Hermione pulled him back with all the strength she had. "But I'm not." She said as Draco turned to her, the anger in his eyes seeming to come to a minimum now. "I need you, and so does Rosie." Hermione said looking over at the bassinet, then quickly turning back to Draco. "If you went back and got killed, Rosie would be in the same situation you're in now. She would be fatherless." Hermione said kindly.

Draco exhaled a deep breath and grabbed Hermione's free hand with his, then kissed her on the forehead. "You're right." He said forcing a smile. "I'm sorry."

Hermione nodded and pulled Draco back down onto the log. They both sat there for a couple of minutes, staring at Rosie, hands clasped together tightly.

'Hermione." Hermione jumped in the air as she heard Harry's voice. She had almost forgotten that Ron and Harry were even with them. She forced a smile just like Draco did. "What… happened?" Harry asked.

Hermione bit her lip and looked at Draco. He looked back at her and gave her a quick kiss, then turned to Harry. "I guess it's my fault."

"No, it's not." Hermione argued.

"Yes it is Hermione, and you know it. Let me take the responsibility for my actions." Draco said not taking his eyes off Harry. Hermione bit her lip and moved herself farther back on the log. "Voldemort wanted to kidnap her, but he didn't want to unless he knew the way around her house. So when I went with Hermione to give her parents the news about her being pregnant, I scoped out the house. I went back and reported it to the deatheaters. They were satisfied and the next night they kidnapped her, leaving a note saying that she was at the burrow with you two."

"Yeah, we got that." Ron said nodding at Draco.

"Well they brought her to the manor and locked Hermione up in a cell." Draco continued. "I felt awful about it, but there was nothing I could do except make she was fed well and the baby stayed healthy. When she had the baby, they took it from her and put it in the nursery for whatever Voldemort was going to do with it. They were going to kill Hermione, but I wasn't about to let them do that, so I saved her, but that only gave us about another night together. They brought us back to the library and that's when I was knocked out. I'm not too sure what happened after that." Draco said turning to Hermione.

Hermione bit her lip and exhaled a deep breath, staring at the ground. "He told me his plan." Hermione said quietly, tears now on her daughter. "He asked me if I thought Harry would be able to kill a living thing." She turned her eyes on Harry as tears came to them. "He asked me if you could kill my daughter."

"That's ridicules Hermione." Harry said. "Why would I kill you daughter?"

Hermione started to cry harder now and Draco wrapped his arm around her shoulder and brought her closer to him. "Because he turned her into a horcrux." She said this quickly, then buried her head in Draco's chest, soaking his shirt in tears.

Draco wrapped both of his arms around her and rocked her back and forth. Hermione could feel the tension surrounding her, everybody finally realizing what a dilemma they were in. "It's okay Hermione." Draco said softly. "Nothing is going to happen to Rosie."

"Do we really have a choice?" Ron said. Hermione peeled her face from Draco's chest and looked up at Ron.

"What?" She asked through her sobs.

"If that baby is a horcrux of Voldemort, then we don't have a choice." Ron said standing up properly and walking over towards the bassinet.

Hermione quickly pushed herself from Draco's arms and grabbed a still sleeping Rosie and pulled her tight against her chest. "You stay away from my daughter, Ronald." Hermione warned.

"Hermione… be reasonable." Ron said still approaching them slowly.

"Stay back." Hermione said through clenched teeth. "She's my daughter Ron, not some innabinent object that you can just destroy. She's a living breathing human being!" Hermione raised her voice and Rosie stirred in her arms. Hermione quickly rocked her and ran her hand through her hair, then turned back to Ron who had stopped mere feet from her.

Harry and Draco stayed out of the conversation. They both saw both sides from which each person was coming from. Yes, Rosie was a human being, but she was also one of Voldemort's horcruxs, and without her being destroyed, neither could Voldemort. "Hermione, how are we supposed to defeat Voldemort if that baby is still alive."

"That _baby_ is named Rose, and she's no different than Harry." Hermione said quietly.

"What?"

"Don't play dumb Ronald."

"It's different. _Rose _has even been out of the womb for, what, three days? None of us know her, none of us are attached to her enough for us not to do what _has_ to be done. This _has_ to be done Hermione." Ron said walking forward and holding out his arms for Hermione to hand over Rose.

Hermione stood up and through her legs over the back of the log. Draco stood up quickly and stood in front of Hermione, facing Ron. He had chosen his side. "I do." Draco said nodding and reaching behind him to take Hermione's hand, still facing Ron. "I know her well enough to know that what Hermione is saying is right."

Ron through his arms in the air and turned to Harry. "Am I the only one with common sense around this place? Harry, please tell me you agree with me?"

Harry stood up straight, walked next to Ron, and put his hand on his shoulder. "I'm sorry Ron, but I agree with Hermione. I think we need to think this over before we do anything drastic."

Ron pushed Harry's hand off of his shoulder and looked at him with disgust. "Just because you see this baby as nothing more than yourself, doesn't mean you should take pity for it." Everybody stared at Ron, waiting to see what he would do next. Hermione held onto Rose tightly as Ron turned and looked at her. "If nobody is going to do anything, then I am." And before anybody could do anything, Ron was over the log and was trying to pull Rosie from Hermione's grip.

Hermione screamed as she held on to Rosie for dear life. Harry quickly grabbed Ron and tried to pull him back, but Ron was determined and nothing was going to stop him. Nothing except…

With one swift back swing, Draco had clenched his fist together and made contact with Ron's cheek. Ron fell back onto the ground, crying out in pain at where Draco had just punched him. "Stay away from my daughter." Draco said as Hermione tried to calm down a now screaming baby, tears pouring down her own cheeks. Draco placed his hands on her shoulders and gave one last look at Ron before leading Hermione farther into the woods and telling her to sit down and rest on the ground. She held Rosie against her as her and Draco watched Harry and Ron argue in the distance.

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_Hey again! I hope you guys liked this chapter. I told you there would be drama. And i just realized that i dont make Ron a very nice person, do i? Anyway, let me know what you thought... in a review : ]. _

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Last Chapter: Harry nodded and then quickly started to walk to the right, but had to stop when he noticed how slowly Ron was carrying Draco. He quickly took Draco's other arm around his shoulder and Ron and Harry carried him down the hallway with Hermione in the lead. They made it to the stairway and sprinted down and out of the door, out to face the horrible reality that would soon set in.

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	30. thirty: words of truth

_Last Chapter: With one swift back swing, Draco had clenched his fist together and made contact with Ron's cheek. Ron fell back onto the ground, crying out in pain at where Draco had just punched him. "Stay away from my daughter." Draco said as Hermione tried to calm down a now screaming baby, tears pouring down her own cheeks. Draco placed his hands on her shoulders and gave one last look at Ron before leading Hermione farther into the woods and telling her to sit down and rest on the ground. She held Rosie against her as her and Draco watched Harry and Ron argue in the distance._

Draco had eventually sat down next to Hermione as she leaned against the tree. They both watched as Harry and Ron argued beyond the trees and in the darkness. Draco wrapped his arm around Hermione's shoulder and pulled her closer to him when he heard her start to cry. She leaned her head on his shoulder and held Rosie closer to her as she tried to keep her eyes open and stop herself from falling asleep. Draco kissed her on the top of the head and held his arm out towards Rosie. "Hermione, let me hold her."

"No." Hermione said quietly, pulling Rosie even closer to her. She was still freaked out about Ron trying to kill her daughter and didn't even trust anybody with her, not even Draco.

"Hermione, please. You're going to fall asleep and end up dropping her. Let me hold her, I promise she'll be okay. I'll be right here." Draco said running his hand through her curly hair.

"But what if you fall asleep?" She asked, taking her head off his shoulder and looking up at Draco.

"I won't." Draco gave her a kiss on the nose and smiled at her. She didn't smile back, but bit her lip instead. "I'll be up all night watching over the two of you. And besides, you need your rest."

Hermione looked down at the Rosie and then back up to Draco. "So do you. You're hurt as well."

"Just some broken ribs and my leg. Nothing a spell can't fix." He smiled at her and ran his hand lightly over Rosie head. Hermione nodded her head and handed Rosie over to Draco. Draco laid her across his lap and held her tightly with his left hand, pushing her against his stomach. He kept his other hand on Hermione's shoulder as she quietly fell into a dreamless sleep. He smiled down at Rosie as she cuddled closer to him, trying to keep warm.

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Draco opened his eyes slowly as the morning sun shined into them. He used his hand to shield his eyes from the sunlight and then noticed the Rosie was no longer in his arms and Hermione wasn't at his side. He then remembered that he wasn't supposed to fall asleep and looked around frantically for Rosie and Hermione. He stood up with difficulty because of his broken leg and limped around the little section of the forest that they were in.

He finally saw Hermione standing in the distance with her back to him and limped over slowly. "Hermione?" He called quietly when he was mere feet from her. She turned to see who called her and then turned back to the direction she was originally facing. Draco was happy to see the she had Rosie in her arms, so he limped over to her and placed his hand on her shoulder.

"I'm sorry if I frightened you." She said in a whisper. "Rosie was hungry so I had to feed her." Hermione looked over at Draco and forced a smile. Her eyes were red and her cheeks were stained with tears.

"Are you okay, Hermione?" Draco asked.

She bit her lip and turned her head back to the woods she was staring deeply into. It was then that Draco noticed she wasn't staring at the woods, but the black and red haired boys who sat sleeping against opposite trees. "He hates me." She said so quietly that Draco had to strain himself to hear her.

"He doesn't hate you." Draco said pushing Hermione's hair off her shoulder so it ran down her back.

"Yes he does." Hermione snapped, walking over to an uprooted tree and sitting down on one of the roots, Rosie in her arms. She lowered her head to the ground and stared at her feet.

Draco exhaled a deep breath and then walked over and stood in front of Hermione. He bent down the best he could and placed his hand under her chin, then lifted her head up to look at him. "He doesn't hate you." Draco repeated.

"You don't understand Draco." Hermione said turning her head away from his hand. "Before…you know, me and Ron had something. I don't know what it was, but I know I had feelings for him, and he had feelings for me to, only his feelings were stronger then mine. Ron was practically in love with me."

"Ron is still in love with you. He's just jealous of us. He doesn't hate you." Draco said as Hermione stood up and put her back to Draco.

"You still don't get it."

Draco walked around Hermione and stood in front of her. He placed his hands on her shoulders and looked deeply into her eyes. "Ron is one of you best friends. He _doesn't_ hate you."

"No, he does Draco. And the worst part is I know why he hates me, but I can't do anything about it?" Hermione said becoming frustrated.

"Why does he hate you." Draco said crossing his arms across his chest.

"It's like I said before. Ron loved me and I had feelings for him to until this happened between us. Ron hates me because to him I cheated on him, only he sees it as a million times worse then cheating. In this situation, cheating would have been me and you going out behind his back, having sex, and if the possibility that I became pregnant, I would get an abortion. That would be cheating, only it didn't happen that way. Ron thinks I went out with you behind his back, had sex with you, got pregnant, and wanted to keep the baby because I was in love with you." Hermione said loudly, but only loud enough for them to hear. She quieted down at the hurt look on Draco's face. "I have to tell him Draco."

Draco took a step closer to Hermione and shook his head. "Hermione you can't."

"I have to Draco." Hermione said almost whining. "I can't take it anymore."

"And what about me? Did you ever think about what would happen to me if they find out the truth?"

"Of course I did." Hermione said sitting back down on the roots. She rocked Rosie as she looked up at Draco. "I won't let them hurt you or do anything to you, I promise."

"And what if they make me leave?"

"Then I'll leave to." Hermione said paying attention to Rosie now. "My daughter needs a father." Draco exhaled a deep breath and sat down next to Hermione. He pulled her closer to him and smiled down at Rosie who was looking at them with bright eyes and a smile from ear to ear. Hermione turned to Draco and ran her hand on the side of his cheek. "I have to tell them Draco. They're my best friends."

"Tell us what?"

Hermione and Draco shot they're heads up when they heard Ron's voice. Hermione stood up and Draco quickly followed suit. He held his hands out and took Rosie from Hermione. She handed over her daughter and walked closer to Ron and Harry. "I need to talk to you guys about something important."

Ron rolled his eyes and crossed his arms as he glared at Rosie being held tightly by Draco. Harry nodded and smiled slightly at Hermione. "You can tell us anything, Hermione." Harry said friendly.

Hermione licked her lips and nodded. She turned to Draco and saw that he was waiting intensely for the words to leave her mouth. He didn't want to hear them come from her mouth, but he knew they would and he knew she was right. If the four of them and Rosie were going to be running away together, the truth needed to be known. Hermione turned back to her best friends and bit her lip. "So… Rosie wasn't conceived like a normal person would be." Hermione said slowly, trying to find the calmest way to tell them this information.

"We don't want to hear about the weird ways that you and Malfoy-"

"I'm not talking about that." Hermione said interrupting Ron. "What I meant was me and Draco… we technically didn't have… sex." Both Harry and Ron looked at Hermione like she was crazy, then suddenly, Ron busted out in laughter. "What could you possibly be laughing at, Ronald?"

"What happened? Did Malfoy forget what to do?" Ron said holding his stomach in laughter.

Draco limped next to Hermione and shot Ron a dirty look. "You're one to talk. How many times have you been able to charm your python out of its basket oh great and wonderful snake charmer." Draco snapped with a huge smirk on his face.

Ron stopped laughing instantly and looked like he was about to kill Draco. Hermione shot Draco a look and he quickly apologized to her with his eyes and took a step behind her. "Hermione, what did happen?" Harry asked concerned.

Hermione bit her lip and exhaled another deep breath, closing her eyes and getting ready for her friends reactions. She opened her eyes and looked deeply into Harry's green eyes. "Draco raped me."

* * *

_I'm sorry, but i enjoy leaving you guys with really bad cliffhangers! _

_First of all i wanted to appoligize for how long it took me to upload this chapter. my friends all came home from college for spring break so i spent the time i would normally spend writing with them. ill try to never let that happen again, but no promises. _

_Secondly i wanted to bring up the subject about Lucius. Some people seemed like they were mad or upset that i killed him off, but i promise i have a reason, and i'm goign to explain it for you. Before Lucius was killed, i made it look like Draco was goign to be killed, but Draco is one of the main characters (and my fav. character in all the harry potter movies and books! :] ) in this story, so i couldnt kill him off, so then i had to make the decision of who to kill instead. Yes, i could of killed off any of the other people in the room, but i wanted to give Draco something to grieve over. I wanted a way to show his emotions about how he really is on the inside, so i figured killing off his father would be a good way to show it. i know its mean and i appoligize if you're a lucius fan, but it had to happen!_

_Thirdly, PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE REVIEW!_

* * *


	31. thirty one: not on your side

_Last Chapter: Ron stopped laughing instantly and looked like he was about to kill Draco. Hermione shot Draco a look and he quickly apologized to her with his eyes and took a step behind her. "Hermione, what did happen?" Harry asked concerned._

_Hermione bit her lip and exhaled another deep breath, closing her eyes and getting ready for her friends reactions. She opened her eyes and looked deeply into Harry's green eyes. "Draco raped me."_

* * *

Nobody had any time to react before Ron was running at Draco with his hands outstretched towards his throat. Draco had enough time to shove Rosie into Hermione's arms before he was knocked to ground with Ron on top of him. Draco was trying to push Ron off, but the weight of his body and the force of his hands pressing down on his neck was giving Ron the advantage. Draco heard Hermione yell and was relieved when Harry yanked Ron off of him and was holding him back.

Draco caught his breath and sat up. Hermione was trying to calm down Rosie who was crying from all the yelling and Harry was holding Ron by the back of his shirt as he tried to reach Draco again. Draco grabbed onto the trunk of the tree and pulled himself off. Hermione walked over to him and looked at him with apology written all over her face.

He smiled at her to let her know it was okay and then wrapped his arms around her and Rosie in a tight bear hug. He put his chin on her shoulder and closed his eyes, wishing they were alone and didn't have to go through with this again. "I can't believe this!" Ron yelled, still trying to get away from Harry. Draco opened his eyes and released his arms from Hermione as she turned around to face her best friends. She stood in front of Draco, knowing that if her friends wanted to get to him, they would have to get through her first, and they would never hurt her. "Are you seriously okay being around with him, Hermione?" Ron asked, finally giving up trying to escape Harry's tight grip.

"It didn't happen overnight Ron." Hermione snapped. "I hated Draco until about a week ago."

"But now your hanging all over him!" Ron said throwing his arms into the air. "I thought you were the smartest witch of your age!?!"

"She is the smartest witch of her age." Draco snapped back at Ron.

"I'm not talking to you." Ron said through gritted teeth.

"Hermione, what happened exactly?" Harry asked, releasing his grip on Ron.

Hermione opened her mouth to talk but Draco stopped her. "I'll tell them." Draco said to her, and when she opened her mouth to argue, he closed it with his hand. "I can't bear to hear you say it." He whispered, and then gave her a quick kiss on the forehead. He turned to Harry and Ron and started to explain. "I had orders. My orders were to destroy you, Potter. I had to break Hermione apart from you so you would eventually grow weaker by loss of friends. My orders were simple enough, even though I didn't want to do them." Draco added the last part quickly. "I had to rape Hermione, so I did. About three weeks later she came to me and told me she was pregnant. I had to report to my father who eventually reported to Voldemort. I had to force Hermione into keeping the baby and I had to force her into telling everybody else that we were going out."

"You're a bastard." Ron said quickly.

"Quite Ron." Hermione snapped, glaring at him. He bit his lip and crossed his arms, then found a pebble on the ground to stare at.

Draco continued. "After a couple months of drama and… name calling," Draco said glaring at Ron for all the times he called Hermione a whore. "we eventually grew closer and started to get feelings for each other." Harry and Ron looked at Hermione with shock that she had gotten feelings for her rapist. "Hermione didn't get them as quickly as I did though." Draco said glancing at Hermione who nodded at Harry and Ron. They eventually lost they're surprised faces as they turned back to hatred towards the man with the blonde hair in front of them. "Once the summer came I had a new order. I had to find the places in Hermione's home that were good for deatheaters to hide in. So when we went to tell her parents, I found them and had to report back to Voldemort. That night they came and kidnapped her. They kept her in the dungeons until she gave birth."

"Draco brought me my meals every day. If it wasn't for him, I probably would have died there from starvation."

"Is that why you're so much bloody in love with him?" Ron snapped.

"No." Hermione said quietly, looking at Draco with a smile. "I started to love him after he saved my life."

"He saved your life?" Harry asked.

"Hermione he didn't save your life, we did. We were the ones who came into that hell hole of a home and brought you out." Ron said pointing at Draco.

"Hell hole?" Draco asked, glaring at Ron again, but Hermione kept talking like he never said anything.

"Ron if he hadn't saved my life then you guys would have been dragging out a dead body." Hermione said taking a step towards Ron and Harry. "After I gave birth to Rosie, they took her away from me right away. I never even got to see what she looked liked. They dragged me to the library and tortured me. They were going to kill me right then and there, but something… someone stopped them." Hermione said turning and smiling back at Draco. He limped forward and stood behind her, taking her free hand in his and entwining their fingers. "He blocked the killing curse from hitting me and then admitted in front of all the deatheaters and Voldemort that he loved me and he was never pretending like they thought he was. They locked us up together in the cell and they were going to kill us when you guys came to save us." Hermione bit her lip and looked down at Rosie. "It was just to late to save Rosie from her terrible fate."

"So now she's a horcrux." Harry said quietly. He looked at Draco and then back to Hermione. His eyes then found their fingers that were entwined tightly and he looked at Draco again and nodded. "If Hermione trust you after you raped her, then I trust you."

"What!?" Ron snapped.

Harry ignored him. "I hate you for what you did to Hermione, but I'm going to trust Hermione. And if she trust you, then I trust you." Draco nodded a thank you at Harry, but Harry wasn't done. "Don't think for one second that I'm on your side, Malfoy."

"But you are, Potter." Draco said matter-of-factly. "I'm on Hermione's side and so are you, so were on the same side. Besides, he killed my father. I want him dead just as much as you do." Draco's eyes suddenly filled with hate and anger. "I hate him." He said through clenched teeth.

"We're in this together." Hermione said looking back and forth between Harry, Draco, and Ron.

"No… we're not." Ron said. "As long as that… bastard is still here, then I won't be here."

"What are you talking about Ron?" Hermione asked.

"I can't be around him because I don't trust him. And I think you two are idiots for trusting him. He's one of them!"

"He's one of us now, Ron." Hermione snapped. "Don't you trust me? Harry does."

"Of course I trust you, Hermione. It's him I don't trust."

"Look Weasley, just give me a chance okay?" Draco asked. "I'm not the same eleven year old boy who walked around the school making your life a living hell, okay."

Hermione nodded agreeing with Draco. Ron bit the side of his lip and shook his head. "Fine. But I'm sleeping with one eye open." Ron turned his back on them and walked back to where him and Harry had slept that night. Harry kept his eyes on Hermione and Draco and then walked away after Ron.

Hermione exhaled a deep breath and turned to Draco. "That went better then I thought it would."

"No." Draco said, still watching Ron and Harry. "They don't trust me. Nothing has changed except now they know the truth… the whole truth."

"Don't worry." Hermione said wrapping her free arm around Draco and resting her head on his shoulder. "They'll see the good in you… I know they will."

* * *

_So i'm sorry it took me so long to update! _

_And im sorry for the short chapter. I am having the WORST writers block ever! If anybody has any ideas or anything in mind that they think would be really cool to happen in this story, please let me know. I will GLADLY use it (if thats okay with you of course : ]) and you will totally get credit for it too!_

_Anyway, review! And ideas too PLEASE._


	32. thirty two: friendship

_Last Chapter: Hermione exhaled a deep breath and turned to Draco. "That went better then I thought it would."_

_"No." Draco said, still watching Ron and Harry. "They don't trust me. Nothing has changed except now they know the truth… the whole truth."_

_"Don't worry." Hermione said wrapping her free arm around Draco and resting her head on his shoulder. "They'll see the good in you… I know they will."_

* * *

Hermione and Draco made their way over towards Harry and Ron with their fingers locked together. Draco couldn't help but notice the jealous looks him and Hermione were getting from Ron. Ron was standing against a tree with his hands in his pockets and Harry was sitting down on a raised root running his hand through his hair, thinking. Draco took a seat on the ground to rest off his broken leg and Hermione handed him Rosie who quickly fell asleep in his arms. "So…" Hermione started, breaking the awkward silence. "What's the plan?"

"We need to get out of this forest. It won't be long until the deatheaters come looking for us." Draco said, hoping to start off on a good foot by helping out.

"Do you know how to get out?" Harry asked Draco, raising his head from the ground.

Draco nodded and then looked around at where they were, finally deciding on the right direction. He lifted his free hand and pointed behind Ron. "If we go that way we'll eventually hit a muggle town."

"And you know this how…?" Ron asked.

"I've ran away from home numerous times, Weasley." Draco said calmly.

Ron rolled his eyes and turned his attention back to the forest that surrounded them. "We'll need food to." Hermione said.

"And wands." Draco added. "Hermione and me don't have ours, obviously."

"Well that'll have to wait until we can safely retrieve you two one." Harry said standing up. "I think heading into that muggle town would be best right now. We can get some food and some needed supplies."

"How?" Draco asked. "We have no muggle money."

"We'll figure that out when we get there. Right now we need to move before they come looking for us like Draco said." Harry said turning towards the direction they were going to be heading in. He didn't see everybody staring at him for calling Draco Draco, or the confused look on all their faces.

Draco grabbed onto the trunk to pull himself up, but Hermione quickly turned to him and told him to stay seated. She turned and faced Ron quickly. "Ron, can I borrow your wand again?" Hermione asked. Ron nodded and tossed his wand gently over to Hermione. She knelt down next to Draco and smiled at him. "I know some spells." She said nodding at his broken leg.

Draco nodded and Hermione pulled up his pant leg to reveal his broken bone. She exhaled a deep breath and bit her lip, placing the wand on his leg. "Hermione." Draco said quickly, stopping her right before she cast the spell. "Are you sure you know what you're doing? Have you ever done this before?"

"Not on a person, but don't worry. I'm the smartest witch of my age, remember?" Hermione said with a big smile.

"Yeah… I remember." Draco said smiling back at her.

Hermione quickly turned her face back to his leg so he wouldn't see her blush and put the tip of Ron's wand to his leg. She said the incantation out loud and watched as the inside of Draco's leg moved and fixed itself. Draco had to bite his lip and turn his head to the side with his eyes closed to stop himself from screaming at the pain. "Are you ribs broken to?" Hermione asked as she put his pant leg back down.

"Yeah." Draco said. "Rosie's laying on them though."

Hermione turned around the face Ron and saw that he was watching them. She smiled at him and asked him to come over. He did as he was told and slowly walked towards them, dragging his feet the entire way. Hermione held her hands out for Rosie and Draco slowly handed her to Hermione. Hermione stood up with Rosie, who was now half awake, and turned to face Ron. She looked down at Rosie and then at Ron. She started to hand Rosie to Ron, but then hesitated, remembering that Ron had tried to hurt her the night before.

Hermione licked her lips and studied Ron's face. She smiled at Ron with kind eyes and slowly handed Rosie over to him. He hesitated with taking her, but eventually grabbed her and held her out in front of him like she carried a disease. Rosie opened her eyes wide and stared at Ron, a huge smile growing on her face. She then took a hand and wrapped it around Ron's thumb that was wrapped around her chest.

Ron's scared and unsure looked suddenly disappeared and his entire face was filled with warmth and love. He smiled shyly at Hermione and then held Rosie in his arms, laying her tightly against his chest. Hermione smiled at Ron again and then turned to Draco. Draco hadn't taken his eyes off Ron. He didn't easily forgive and forget like Hermione did, and he knew that deep down inside of Ron, he still had the same ideas as he did the night before.

Hermione lifted up Draco's shirt as he kept his eyes on Ron and Rosie. Draco didn't even notice that Hermione had casted the spell until he felt the pain shooting through his side and let out a scream. Hermione bit her lip and quickly apologized. Draco smiled at her. "It wasn't your fault." Draco said giving her a kiss on the forehead. "Thank you."

Hermione stood up and helped Draco stand up as well. She turned to Ron and held her hands out. Ron handed Rosie back over to Hermione quickly, hoping that nobody noticed his growing affection towards the baby. They all made their way over towards Harry who was still staring out into the forest and headed out towards the direction of the muggle town together.

After a couple hours of walking in silence, Hermione turned to Harry and asked the question that had been bugging her but she hadn't had the chance to ask until now. "Harry, how did you guys get into the manor?"

Harry smiled and looked at Hermione as they continued to walk through the forest. "Well we decided to go and see you and tell you that we were sorry, but when we got to your house you weren't there. There was a note from you saying that you were at the burrow with us, but that obviously wasn't true. We figured you were in trouble and we eventually figured out that it was Draco."

"Hey!" Draco said, defending himself.

Hermione smiled at Draco and then turned back to Harry, urging him to continue. "We figured with you being pregnant with his child he wouldn't want you to give birth in a muggle hospital and with the Malfoy's being so close to Voldemort, St. Mungos wouldn't of been a good choice either. We eventually figured out that you had to be in the Malfoy Manor, but we didn't know where it was."

"Good job." Hermione said with a smile, proud that her friends had figured that out.

"So we kind of broke into the ministry of magic and found out the location of the Malfoy Manor. We didn't really have a plan other than to go in with high spirits and save you."

"Lucky for us we ran into Tonks." Ron added.

"Tonks?" Draco asked. "Nymphadora Tonks?"

"Yeah." Harry said looking at Draco and then turning back to Hermione. "We told her what was going on and she immediately called the order. They wanted me and Ron to wait, but we knew that your life was at stake, so we decided to leave and save you. We gave Tonks the location of the Malfoy Manor and then apparted to it."

"Hold on." Draco said interrupting Harry's story. "My father has intruder alerts set up all over our Manor. You couldn't have got in without somebody finding out you were there."

"Your father did know we were there, but only he knew it. Once he figured that it had to be us he sent your mom to come and get us. She told us what was going on and then led us to a secret passageway that would lead us to the library."

"But why would she help you?" Draco asked, almost offended.

"She told us that she would do anything to protect her son." Ron said. "Almost made me sick to my-"

"Anyway," Harry continued, interrupting Ron. "we made our way up the secret passageway and when we saw what was going on, we jumped in right away. It was just luck that the order came when they did."

"What do you think happened to them?" Hermione asked to nobody in particular.

"Don't worry, they can take care of themselves. Right now, we just have to worry about what we're doing and how we're going to get out of this mess we're in."

Everybody nodded in agreement as they continued their walk in silence.

------------------------

They had all escaped with just minor cuts and bruises, and right now they were all gathered in the headmaster's office, heads low to the ground, thinking.

"They escaped. They'll be fine." Moody said with his hands placed on top of his walking stick.

"We need to help them." Lupin said glancing around the room hoping that somebody would agree with him.

"We will Remus." Dumbledore said calmly. "We will help them from Hogwarts and from every other magical place out there."

"How?" Tonks asked curiously.

"We fight." Mr. Weasley said. "We fight them like we did tonight. That's the only way we can protect them now."

Dumbledore nodded in agreement. "They are out there now with low defenses, but they have a strong offense. Everybody in that group of friends has something to contribute to one another, and they will succeed."

"Friends?" Kingsley said with a laugh.

"We know that Harry, Ron, and Hermione are friends, but that Malfoy kid is with them now too." Tonks said agreeing with Kingsley.

"Draco Malfoy is one of them now. They may not be friends, but they will be eventually." Dumbledore said standing up and walking towards the window. "It's like I said earlier, everybody in that group has something to contribute. If they don't recognize the bond they have now, then they will eventually." Dumbledore walked back over to his desk and pointed it wand at a bottle of wine. It quickly poured itself into eight glasses that floated over to the occupying people in the room. They all took the glasses and lowered their heads to the ground, thinking and praying. "For now… we fight. We fight for love, rightness's, and for friendship." Dumbledore raised his glass and everybody followed suit. "To friendship."

"To friendship." They all said at once, then lowered their glasses to their lips and drank for what they truly wanted, what they truly believed in.

* * *

_I had a day off so i decided to make up for the amount of time i made you wait last time and just give you another chapter today! Aren't i nice : ]_

_So a lot of things were explained in this chapter (kind of). And dont' worry, more on the Order will come later._

_But please review! And input! I love input!_


	33. thirty three: what we should be doing

_Last Chapter: "Draco Malfoy is one of them now. They may not be friends, but they will be eventually." Dumbledore said standing up and walking towards the window. "It's like I said earlier, everybody in that group has something to contribute. If they don't recognize the bond they have now, then they will eventually." Dumbledore walked back over to his desk and pointed it wand at a bottle of wine. It quickly poured itself into eight glasses that floated over to the occupying people in the room. They all took the glasses and lowered their heads to the ground, thinking and praying. "For now… we fight. We fight for love, rightness's, and for friendship." Dumbledore raised his glass and everybody followed suit. "To friendship."_

_"To friendship." They all said at once, then lowered their glasses to their lips and drank for what they truly wanted, what they truly believed in._

* * *

By the time the five of them reached the muggle village, the sun was setting. They decided to wait on the edge of the forest and move out in the cover of darkness. They stayed in the shadows of the town as they walked around cautiously. Harry was in the lead with his hands in his pockets and his fingers encased around his wand. Ron was doing the same, only he took the back. They were ready for anything, even though they were pretty sure that nobody would find them in the village, or at least they hoped.

After a couple of hours of wandering the streets, they came across a grocery store. Harry held his hand out and told them to stay hidden, then left the shadows and walked over to the darkened grocery story. He looked inside the windows and then motioned for them to come. They followed Harry as he made his way around to the back of the building. "Do you think they have a back door?" Harry asked.

"For what?" Ron asked.

"None of us are going to last very long without any food in our stomachs." Harry said seriously.

"It's closed Harry." Hermione said holding a sleeping Rosie in her arms.

"I know that." Harry said turning the corner and looking around for the back door. Hermione froze rooted to the spot, finally realizing what Harry was suggesting. "Ah ha!" Harry said going behind a dumpster and poking his head out with a small smile. "Found it."

"We can't steal Harry." Hermione said sternly as she could hear Harry pushing objects out of the way to get to the door. Ron was already at Harry's side, helping him move all the trash out of the way.

"Bloody hell, there's a lot of trash back here." Hermione heard Ron say.

"They must never use this door." Harry said agreeing with Ron. "Hey Malfoy, come make yourself useful."

"Coming." Draco said leaving Hermione's side and walking towards the dumpster.

"Draco!" Hermione said.

He stopped walking and turned back to her. "Come on Hermione. We're going to need your brains for this." Draco said with a smile, then turned back and walked towards Harry and Ron.

Hermione stopped her feet and followed, pouting the whole way. "This is wrong." She said.

"The alarm will go off once we unlock the door. What spell can we use to silence it?" Harry asked.

"I know one." Draco said. "Can I borrow your wand Weasley?"

Ron nodded and handed his wand over to Draco. Harry quickly unlocked the door and Draco found the alarm system as fast as he could and shot a spell quietly at it. Blue jets flung from the wand and the store went silent. Draco proudly handed Ron back his wand and walked inside the store. Harry and Ron both smiled, impressed, then followed after him. Hermione exhaled a deep breath and took one look at the surroundings outside. She shook her head and followed the boys into the store. "We can't steal." Hermione said for what felt like the thousandth time.

"Do you have money then Hermione?" Harry asked calmly. Hermione bit her lip and shook her head. "We don't have a choice. We all need to eat, including Rose." Harry nodded at Rosie and Hermione looked down at her daughter and squeezed her tighter.

"Well maybe we could leave them something for what were taking?" Hermione said watching as Ron opened up a bag of potato chips and started to shove them down his throat. Draco walked over to Hermione and gave her a kiss on the forehead as Harry joined Ron by the chips.

"Hermione, let me have Rosie and you go get something to eat." He said with a smile, holding out his hands towards his daughter.

"I can't just take this food." Hermione said looking around at the store.

"Hermione, eating for you is more important then any of us eating." Draco said seriously. "You just had a baby and your still weak from that. Not to mention you have to keep eating and getting your nutrients so that Rosie can stay healthy." Hermione exhaled a light breath and looked down at her daughter in her arms, running her fingers through her brown hair.

Hermione nodded and then handed Rosie over to Draco. "Fine, but I'm not going to like doing it." She said quietly, walking away and heading towards the fruit. Draco smiled and watched as she walked around and picked up an assortment of fruit.

As Hermione was walking back, red, white, and blue lights shot in from the outside and sirens could be heard. Hermione ran over to Draco and Rosie with the fruit still in her arms and looked around the find Harry and Ron. Harry and Ron were sprinting towards them with loads of food in their arms. "What's going on?" Draco asked confused by the lights.

"Police." Hermione said quickly.

"Police?" Draco asked, but Hermione didn't answer him. Instead she turned to Harry and listened as he spoke.

"We must of messed up or missed a security system. They know were in here and we have to get out." Harry said to Hermione.

"Who knows were in here? I don't know any deatheaters that shine lights into buildings and have loud sirens." Ron said almost as confused about the police as Draco was.

"Are they around the back?" Harry asked Hermione. Hermione quickly walked around the back and poked her head out. She didn't see any cops but she could hear more sirens coming. She quickly hurried back over to Harry and shook her head.

"There's more coming. We have to hurry." As Hermione finished her sentence a huge bang was heard coming from the front door and then glass hit the floor and shattered. Everybody jumped and got low to the ground when the noise went off and Rosie started crying hysterically. Hermione quickly snatched Ron's wand out of his pocket and silenced Rosie.

They all quickly ran and hid behind a shelf, Harry and Hermione both with wands out. They made their way cautiously from shelf to shelf until the back door was in sight. Harry went to run for it, but Hermione grabbed his shirt and pulled him back lightly, then pointed towards the main isle in front of the door. About three cops with dark blue uniforms on were blocking the doorway.

Harry and Hermione both looked at each other, unsure of what to do, then Hermione got an idea. She crawled past Harry and stuck her head out front the shelf and looked around the store. She found a shelf filled with glass bottles of iced tea and aimed Ron's wand at it. She quietly whispered: "Ruducto." And watched as the spell knocked all the glass bottles onto the floor and shattered them. The cops all turned and ran towards the shelf and Hermione waved her hand at her friends. They all quickly stood up and made a run for the door.

On their way out the door, they heard a cop shout at them and turned to see him running right at them, eyes set on Draco. Hermione quickly shot a spell at him which knoced him to his feet and they left the building safely. They didn't stop until they were far away from the store and in a secluded alley.

They all caught their breaths and then Hermione took Rosie from Draco and took the silencing spell off of her. "Well that was a disaster." Draco said. "We didn't even get anything to eat." At Draco's statement, Ron stuck his hands into his pockets and pulled out two small bags of potato chips. "Oh, so were supposed to last on two bags of potato chips?"

"Relax Draco." Hermione said calmly.

"Yeah, we'll find something to eat." Harry said. "Right now, I think we should get out of here though."

They all nodded and followed Harry as he made his way back to the forest they had come from. When they reached a good spot, they all sat down on the ground and looked at each other, nobody wanting to start the conversation.

Ron impatiently pulled a bag of chips from his pocket and went to open them, but Hermione stopped him. "Ron!"

"What?" Ron asked with his hands on each side of the bag about to rip it open.

"That's all the food we have for now. You need to save that."

Ron rolled his eyes and put the bag back in his pocket. "Well what the hell are we going to do? We need to eat and were going to need a place to sleep."

"We'll have to sleep here again tonight." Harry said running his hands through his hair.

"Why don't we just do the smart thing and go back to Hogwarts. We can ask Dumbledore for help and we'll be able to contact the order." Ron said.

"And how do you propose we do that?" Draco asked.

"We go through one of the secret passage ways. There's hundreds in Hogwarts." Ron said hopeful.

"We can't just walk into Hogwarts Ron." Hermione said.

"Yeah. You must be forgetting who were dealing with here." Draco said agreeing with Hermione. "Voldemort is going to have deatheaters at every entrance of Hogwarts. That's the place they're going to expect us to go to next. They think we're going to want to seek help from Dumbledore."

"That's what we should be doing!" Ron said getting frustrated.

"Draco's right, Ron." Harry said standing up. "Going back to Hogwarts is too dangerous right now. It'll be like committing suicide."

"And now because of that little scene we caused back there, the muggles are going to be on the lookout for us too." Hermione said pointing out the obvious.

Harry nodded and lowered his head to the ground, rubbing his temples. "Wait, why would the muggles be looking for us?" Draco asked.

"When we were leaving they saw you. They know what you look like and soon they're going to have everybody looking for you. Worst of all, they know we used magic. This only means that the Ministry will have to get involved and if the deatheaters find out…"

"They'll know where we are." Ron said finishing Hermione's sentence.

"We can't rest tonight." Harry said. "We have to keep moving. They're going to figure out where we are and then we'll be in big trouble."

Everybody nodded and stood up except for Draco. He was staring at the ground biting the side of his lip. "Draco?" Hermione asked walking over to him and putting her hand on his shoulder.

He looked up at her and smiled. "We're going to need some supplies. If we don't get them then we'll be sleeping on the cold ground. Not to mention we're going to need some money and some food. We can't march into Gringotts without being seen."

"Do you have any suggestions?" Harry asked.

"I know one place." Draco said with a smirk.

"Where?" Ron asked, wanting nothing more then to get some food into his stomach.

"My manor."

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_I know that this chapter was kind of a filler, and i apoligize. The next chapter will be great... i promise!_

_PLEASE REVIEW! _


	34. thirty four: malfoy manor again

_Last Chapter: He looked up at her and smiled. "We're going to need some supplies. If we don't get them then we'll be sleeping on the cold ground. Not to mention we're going to need some money and some food. We can't march into Gringotts without being seen."_

_"Do you have any suggestions?" Harry asked._

_"I know one place." Draco said with a smirk._

_"Where?" Ron asked, wanting nothing more then to get some food into his stomach._

_"My manor."_

"WHAT!" All three of them said at once to Draco's suggestion.

"You want to go back? You want to go back to the place that we just barely escaped from?" Ron asked, confused.

"Just me. You guys can stay in hiding and I'll go inside and get the supplies were going to need. I can get food, a tent, blankets, pillows, anything we'll need."

"No! Draco, that's… suicide!" Hermione said loudly.

Draco stood up and placed both of his hands on her shoulders, then gave her a quick kiss. "Let me do this, Hermione." He said with a smile. "I'm still a Malfoy. The security won't be breached if I enter the house and I can get in and out without anybody even knowing that I'm in there." Draco glanced over and Ron and Harry and then turned back to Hermione and leaned in towards her ear. "Let me prove to them that I'm not the same person I was the past 5 years."

Hermione bit her lip and looked down at the ground, still unsure. "I don't know Draco…"

"Hermione… please." Draco said squeezing her shoulders softly.

"There's other ways to prove yourself then to go and get yourself killed." Hermione said determined.

"I need to do this. Let me do this." Draco said moving his hands down from her shoulders to her upper arms.

"Fine." Harry said from behind Hermione.

Hermione turned around quickly and looked at Harry with a questionable look. "Fine?"

"Fine." Harry repeated, raising his eyebrows and nodding at Draco.

Draco smiled and let go of Hermione's shoulders and started to head back towards the Manor with Ron and Harry at his heels. Hermione stood there shocked for a couple for a couple of seconds, than ran to catch up with them. "This is crazy!" Hermione yelled, but they all ignored her. "Do I have no say in this group? You didn't listen to me when you wanted to break into the grocery store, and look what happened. We got caught! And now not only do we have the deatheaters looking for us, but we have the police after us to!"

"What is a police?" Draco asked himself out loud.

"No idea, mate." Ron said following closely behind him. Harry smiled and let out a little snicker at their cluelessness. Hermione was becoming more and more frustrated with every step they took. She finally pushed Ron and Harry out of the way and ran in front of Draco. She stood in front of him and stopped him from walking. "Hermione, move." Ron said rolling his eyes.

"No! This is crazy. I can't let this happen!" Hermione said to the group, but then took a step closer and put her head on Draco's shoulder. "I thought I lost you once, and I can't go through that again. You have a daughter now who needs a father… a living father."

Draco smiled and ran his hand down her back. "I'm not going to die Hermione. I'll be in and out faster than you can say 'deatheater'."

Draco patted her back and pushed her to the side lightly and continued on walking, but Hermione grabbed his hand. "I'm coming with you then."

"Like hell you are!" Harry said. "We just rescued you from there and now you want to go back in."

"Harry is right Hermione." Draco said nodding at Harry. "You're not going in there. Nobody is except me. Actually, it would probably be best if I continued on by myself. The farther away you guy are from the Manor the better."

Harry and Ron nodded in agreement but Hermione squeezed his hand tighter. "Draco, please don't." She begged.

Draco grabbed onto both of her hands and looked at her with a serious face. "I promise… I'll be back." He gave her a quick kiss. "I _promise_."

Hermione bit her lip and nodded reluctantly. Draco smiled a comforting but nervous smile and turned to leave. "Malfoy, wait." Ron said walking towards him with his wand outstretched. "Just in case." Ron said with a slight smile.

Draco took the wand and smiled back. "Thanks." He said glancing from Ron to Harry, then he turned back to Hermione. He gave Rosie a kiss on her forehead and then gave Hermione a long and passionate kiss. "Faster than you can say 'deatheater'." He said and then before Hermione could say anything he was running into the darkness of the woods and towards the danger they had just barely escaped.

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Draco stopped on the edge of the woods as he looked up at his once beloved home. He exhaled a deep breath and gripped Ron's wand tight as he ran towards the side of the house. He knew what he had to do to get inside and he knew what he needed to get, but not getting caught was going to be the tricky part. At the side of the house, he made his way towards the back and found what he was looking for: a small window that led to the basement. He opened it slowly, trying not to make to much noise, and slipped in.

He landed on top of a bookcase and climbed down. He had used this to sneak back inside after he had snuck out during the summer ever since he was 12, and it worked every time. He found his way over to where he knew the tent was that they kept in the basement and grabbed it, then drug it over towards the window for his escape.

He slowly made his way towards the door and opened it slightly, poking his head out to see if anybody was in the stairway. When he saw nobody, he opened the door and started to walk slowly up the stairway, keeping his body pressed against the wall just in case somebody popped out of nowhere. Once he reached the top of the stair way, he checked his surroundings and made a dash across the hallway towards the kitchen. He knew he would be safe in the kitchen, there was nothing but house elves in there.

He opened the door and slid in just as a couple of deatheaters turned the corner. Once he was inside, the banging of pots and pans and silver ware to glass stopped. Draco turned around and saw all the house elves staring at him with confused looks on their faces. To Draco's horror, he could hear the deatheaters voices becoming louder as they edged closer towards the kitchen door. "You have to work or else they'll come in here." Draco said, but all the houselves still stared at him.

Draco stood frozen by the door when he heard the deatheaters voices die down and heard their footsteps stop in front of the door. "Do you hear something?" He heard the one deatheater ask.

"No."

"Exactly. The house elves, they're not working." Draco bit his lip and quickly ran towards the sink. He opened up the cabinet underneath and was just able to squeeze inside. He shut the door just as the three deatheaters opened up the kitchen door. The house elves quickly stared to work again as the deatheaters made their way around the kitchen, looking every elf up and down for anything suspicious. When they decided that nothing was actually wrong, they turned and continued their conversation. "So did you hear what happened the Malfoy tramp?"

"Narcissa?"

"Yeah. The Dark Lord thinks that she has something to do with Potter and the Order getting in. He locked her in the dungeon and is going to perform the killing curse on her once he captures the Malfoy Boy. He wants to punish him for ever falling in love with the mudblood."

"That should be an interesting one to watch."

Draco heard on of the deatheaters laugh as his heart broke with the information. He heard the kitchen door slam shut and he climbed out from under the sink. He ran his hand through his hair, mind wandering about the information he had just heard.

He was brought back to reality when he felt a little tug on his leg. "Can we help you Master?"

"I need food, and a lot of food." The house elf nodded and walked towards the kitchen cabinet. Draco quickly found a bag sitting in the corner of the kitchen and grabbed it and ran towards the elf. The elf immediately started stuffing all kinds of food inside the bag, and it seemed to go on forever and ever. When the elf finished, he bowed lightly to Draco and Draco returned it with a smile. "Thank you." He said. The elf turned red in the face and Draco turned towards the door with the bag swung around his shoulder. As he was about to open the door, he turned back towards the house elves. "You never saw me, okay?"

They all nodded and Draco quickly made his way out of the door with one hand holding the bag tightly behind his back. He made his way towards the main stairway, but stopped when his eyes caught the entrance to the dungeon. He bit his lip and looked up at the stairway, then back towards the dungeon entrance. He made up his mind and quickly ran for the dungeon. He opened the door cautiously and made his way towards the cells. "Hello? Mom?" He said in a loud whisper.

"Draco?" A shaky voice called. "Draco, is that you?"

Draco smiled when he saw the face of his mom poke out from one of the far end cells. Draco ran up to her and grabbed her hands, giving her a kiss on her cheek as she did the same to him. "Mom, you look terrible. What have they done to you?"

"What are you doing here, hunny?" Narcissa asked placing her hand on his cheek and massaging it with her thumb.

"We're on the run. I needed to get some things." Draco said grabbing his moms hand that laid on his cheek. He pulled it off his face and grabbed Ron's wand and pointed it at the lock. "Let's get you out of here."

"No! You can't." Narcissa said grabbing his hand. "They'll know it was you."

"They're going to kill you. I can't just leave here knowing that I'm leading my mom to her death."

Narcissa lowered her eyes to the ground but smiled slightly. "I have lived my life to its fullest and I'm ready to die."

"How can you say that? You still have years left to live. And besides… I need you." Draco said as tears ran down his cheeks.

Narcissa wiped his tears away and kissed his forehead. "You don't need me anymore Draco. You have new friends and… a new family."

"You can be part of that family. You have a granddaughter now. She's going to need somebody to spoil her." Draco said smiling weakly.

Narcissa reached into her pocket and grabbed something. She took her fist out of her pocket and placed it in Draco's hand. She unclenched her hand and Draco felt a ring fall into his hand. "I want you to have this." She said.

"Is this dad's?" Draco said staring down at the silver ring with a snake embroidered around the edges and a rose in its mouth.

Narcissa took her hand and placed it under Draco's chin, then lifted his head up to look at her. "Listen to me Draco." She said seriously. "Everything happens for a reason."

"Mom, what are you talking about?"

"Everything that has happened so far has happened for a reason. It will all sort itself out later on."

"I wish you would stop talking like this is the last time we'll see each other." Draco said worried.

"Stop talking and listen to me!" Narcissa said becoming frustrated. "You need to go after the horcruxes. Slytherin, Hufflepuff, and Ravenclaw all have one, and then there's Nagini, Voldemort's snake."

"What are you talking about? Slytherin, Hufflepuff, and Ravenclaw all have one?"

Narcissa went to open her mouth but froze as her eyes set on something behind Draco. Draco could feel his heart race as he just imagined what could be behind him. He gripped Ron's wand tightly and turned around slowly, becoming face to face with a deatheater. The deatheater smirked and opened his mouth to say something smart, but Draco wasn't going to wait around and find out what it was. He pointed Ron's wand as the deatheater and shouted the first spell that came to mind. "Ruducto!"

The deatheater was cast back against the dungeon wall and instantly knocked unconscious. Draco turned to his mother one last time. "You have to go." Narcissa said quickly. "Take these. I'm afraid it's all I have on me." She placed several galleons in Draco's hand and gave him a kiss on the cheek. "Go, they'll know you're here now."

"I'll come back and save you."

Narcissa smiled but waved her hand for him to leave. "Just go, please."

Draco turned and ran towards the door, only stopping once more at the door frame and smiling sweetly at his mom, hoping that it wouldn't be the last time he would see her. He quickly made his way up the dungeon stairs and down the hallway that led to the basement. He had to hide behind a suit of armor once to avoid rushing deatheaters heading for the dungeons, but he safely made it to the basement. He grabbed the tent and placed it inside the bag, then shoved the bag out the window. He climbed out himself and ran back into the woods, taking one last look at the place he used to call home, then turning to his new and dangerous home with a chilling thought of what was to come:… reality.

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	35. thirty five: handling it

_Last Chapter: Draco turned and ran towards the door, only stopping once more at the door frame and smiling sweetly at his mom, hoping that it wouldn't be the last time he would see her. He quickly made his way up the dungeon stairs and down the hallway that led to the basement. He had to hide behind a suit of armor once to avoid rushing deatheaters heading for the dungeons, but he safely made it to the basement. He grabbed the tent and placed it inside the bag, then shoved the bag out the window. He climbed out himself and ran back into the woods, taking one last look at the place he used to call home, then turning to his new and dangerous home with a chilling thought of what was to come:… reality._

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Hermione bit her lip and fidgeted with her hands as she paced from one tree to the next. She kept glancing up at the direction that Draco had ran off to and every time she didn't see him running back, she became more and more nervous and her pulse seemed to quicken.

"Hermione, relax. He's okay. It's going to take some time for him to sneak in and take what we need." Harry said holding Rosie in his lap as he sat down on the ground with his back against a tree.

"He's been gone for almost an hour now." Hermione said glancing back into the woods. "What if something happened to him?" She said turning her head quickly and glancing at Harry and Ron.

"He's fine." Ron said trying to sound confident.

Hermione let out a groan and then sat down on the ground with her legs against her chest and her face buried in her knees. She was breathing heavy through the material of her jeans as she moved her toes impatiently. As she let out a sigh, she heard Harry gasp. "Look." He said quietly.

Hermione's head shot up as she noticed what Harry and Ron were now staring at. A figure was walking towards them quickly with a heavy bag over his shoulder. "Is that him?" Ron asked as Hermione stood up and saw Harry hand Rosie to Ron and walk over to stand next to her with his wand pointed out in front of him.

Hermione smiled with delight when she noticed the bleach blond hair hitting the moonlight that shone through the trees. "It's him." She said with relief smiling at Harry. He didn't smile back, still unsure, but lowered his wand slightly. When the man got closer, it was now clear that it was Draco and Harry lowered his wand completely. Hermione ran up to him and threw herself into his arms, wrapping hers around his back and squeezing tightly. "I'm so happy you're okay." She said quietly, closing her eyes and leaning her head against his chest. Hermione didn't see the concern or dread on Draco's face as he patted her back and glanced over at Harry and Ron. They had caught his stress and their smiles faded when Draco bit his lip and turned his attention back to Hermione.

They released the hug and Draco faked a smile at Hermione, but she caught it. He gave her a kiss quickly before she could say anything, then walked over towards Ron who was holding Rosie. Hermione watched him as he walked over towards Rosie and caught Harry's eye in the process. Harry looked just as confused as she was, so she quickly turned her attention back to Draco. "Trade?" Draco said holding the bag out to Ron.

Ron looked down at Rosie and smiled at the sleeping baby, then handed her over to Draco slowly, careful not to wake her. "Draco, what's wrong?" Hermione asked slowly, licking her lips.

"I was able to get a tent and some food that'll last us about a week." Draco said ignoring Hermione's question and looking down at Rosie. "That's all I could get before…" He slowly died out with his remark and eyed the people surrounding him, staying on Hermione for a couple seconds longer then Harry and Ron, and then turned his attention back to Rosie.

"Before… what?" Harry asked crossing his arms and putting all his weight on his right leg.

Draco looked around at his new friends and exhaled a deep breath, avoiding Hermione's eyes. He didn't know why, but he felt strange telling her this information. He didn't want her to know that she had almost lost him and her daughters grandmother by being caught. He didn't want her to worry. "They have my mother. They're holding her in the dungeon of our home." Hermione walked over to Draco and put a hand on his shoulder gently as he lowered his gaze to the ground. "They're not going to kill her, at least not yet." He said slowly. "Voldemort is waiting till he has me so he can kill her in front of me."

"That's awful." Hermione said quietly.

"That's Voldemort for you." Draco said looking at Hermione and forcing a smile to try and cheer her up. He wrapped his arm around her shoulder and pulled her slowly against his side. She rested her head on his shoulder and Draco looked over at Harry and Ron. "She told me some things before they found out I was in the manor."

"They found out you were in the manor?" Hermione asked quickly, raising her head from his shoulder and looking up at him worried.

"What kind of things?" Harry asked at the same time as Hermione.

Draco ignored Hermione's question, hoping to avoid it for a later time, and answered Harrys question. "At first she said the obvious. We have to destroy horcruxes." Harry and Ron nodded at what they already knew as Hermione still stared at Draco with a worried expression painted on her face. "But then she told me about some of them. Not many, but it's a start."

"Well go on then!" Ron pressed, his full attention on Draco rather than on the bag rummaging through for something good to eat.

"Nagini. That one was kind of a give in considering that damn snake is always around him." Draco bit his lips together and then continued. "And then she said something that I didn't quite understand, but she couldn't explain it to me because…" Draco looked at Hermione. "Just because."

"What was it? I bet Hermione can figure it out." Ron said nodding towards Hermione.

"She said that Slytherin, Hufflepuff, and Ravenclaw all have one."

They all stared at Draco, waiting for more, but no more came. "That's it?" Ron said, expecting a riddle of some sort. Draco nodded and looked at Hermione. She was looking at the ground and Draco could tell that the gears inside of her head were turning away.

"Hermione?" Harry called quietly as she was deep in thought.

Her lips had parted slightly in her concentration, and a few seconds after Harry had called her she closed them again and licked her lips. "Well… obviously it has to do with those three houses of Hogwarts."

"Obviously." Ron said.

Hermione bit the side of her lip and looked down at the ground in concentration. "I'll need to think more on it." She said looking up and turning to the boys. "I need more information than that."

They all nodded and then a sudden awkward silence filled between the friends. Harry cleared his throat to break the silence. "I think we should eat something and then start walking. We can't stay here for much longer." They all agreed and walked over towards Ron who was holding the bag. Hermione held her hands out and took Rosie from Draco then walked over towards a tree and turned her back on her friends to feed her baby.

"Where are we headed?" Draco asked Harry when everybody had finished eating, including Hermione.

"You and Hermione need wands, so I figured we should start there." Harry said as Draco nodded in agreement. "Do you know how to get to Diagon Alley from here?" Harry asked Draco.

"Not really. It's not that far from my manor but I never actually walked there before. It's not really in walking distance, so I used to fly there every once in a while. I might be able to recognize a town if we get to one and then we can figure it out from there."

"Okay." Harry said standing up. "We need to find a body of water then."

"Why?" Ron asked, licking his fingers clean of all the food he had on them.

"Because, a body of water will always lead to a town." Harry said slowly, looking at Ron to see if he was serious.

Harry turned to Hermione with a confused look on his face and Hermione smiled and laughed slightly in amusement. Ron turned to Draco and shook his head. "I swear I don't get these muggles."

"Me either." Draco said agreeing.

They all laughed and stood up, getting ready to head out.

Before they left, Draco took off his plain white undershirt and ripped it in half. He tied the two ends together and handed it to Hermione. She stared at his ripped shirt, wondering what he wanted her to do with it. He smiled and placed it over her shoulder then brought the bigger half in front of her. "It's a sling to carry Rosie in. Now we won't have to carry Rosie in our arms all the time."

Hermione looked at Draco surprised and smiled, placing a half asleep rosie inside the sling. "That was a good idea Draco."

Draco blushed at the compliment and then they all headed out. They traveled the rest of the night and into the morning before they all sat down and took a quick rest. They didn't sit for long, and soon were back up on their feet and moving. They stopped in a clearing in the woods around 7 at night and decided to pitch the tent for the rest of the night and sleep. Hermione put all the protective and silencing charms around them that she knew and then joined the boys with setting up camp. Harry and Ron set up the tent while Draco started a fire with wood he had gathered from around them.

After Hermione ate and fed Rosie, she walked over and sat down next to Draco, who was sitting across from Harry and Ron staring into the blazing fire. She rested her head on his shoulder and he looked at her and smiled, kissing her on the top of her head. "Why don't you go to sleep?" He asked. "You looked exhausted." Hermione agreed and gave Draco a kiss goodnight before waving to Harry and Ron. Once Hermione was inside the tent, Draco turned to Harry and Ron. "I need to tell you guys something. I didn't want to say it around Hermione. I don't want her to worry."

"What's wrong?" Harry asked, his and Ron's attention fully on Draco.

"Remember when I said they found out I was in the manor?" Harry and Ron nodded, remembering this part of information that he easily avoided going into detail about. "Well one of the deatheaters almost caught me, but I was faster than him with the wand. They must have heard the crash because when I left after I cursed him, they all came running. They'll figure out what happened, they'll figure out what I took, and they'll figure out what we're going to do." Harry and Ron both had concerned looks on their faces as Draco ran his hand through his hair and stared into the fire. "This is getting more and more dangerous as the days go on."

"We'll be fine." Harry said trying to stay confident. "We'll just have to keep moving is all."

"Why didn't you want Hermione to know this?" Ron asked curious.

"She can't handle it. She has enough on her plate with Rosie and I didn't want to give her something else to worry about." Draco said looking at Ron and then standing up. "I'm going to go rest my eyes. Wake me when it's my turn to watch?" Draco asked, turning his back and walking away as he heard Harry make a noise, too exhausted to say yes.

Draco walked over to the tent and opened up the flap, then stepped inside. He stopped when he saw Hermione staring at him with her arms crossed over her chest. He looked around the room and saw Rosie lying in a bassinet that Hermione had transfigured from a log. He turned his gaze back to her and smiled, but she didn't smile back. He looked at her confused and she looked back at him, only with hurt in her eyes. "I can't handle it?"

Draco's smile faded and he let out a deep breath, running his hand through his hair again. He could feel a headache coming on. "Hermione, please don't-"

"Why can't I handle it, Draco?"

"You're taking this wrong Hermione. I didn't tell you because I didn't want you to worry."

"You didn't want me to have another thing on my plate. I heard you Draco, and I understand perfectly." She turned her back on him and walked over towards one of the built in beds. Draco walked after her and grabbed her wrist, pulling her towards him. "Let me go Draco, I don't want to talk to you right now."

"What's wrong with you? I did you a favor."

"A favor? You kept something from me… something important… something I should have known about."

"I kept it from you because I wanted to do the right thing. Telling you that information would of made everything a million times worse for you."

"Oh… so me finding out this way is better?" She snapped, getting loud.

"Potter and Weasley don't have as much on their plate as you do. Well… Potter does, but Weasley doesn't. Anybody who has to help destroy Voldemort shouldn't have a baby around. You might be a strong witch, Hermione, but you're not-" Draco stopped short, noticing the insult before it came out.

"I'm not what?" Hermione said through clenched teeth. When Draco didn't respond, her face seemed to turn a shade of red in anger. "I'm not what, Draco? I'm not _that_ strong? Because I can't handle it?"

"No, Hermione, that's not-"

"I can handle _anything_ that comes in front of me, Draco!" Hermione yelled louder then she meant, waking up Rosie and sending her into a crying fit. "I handled you making fun of me for 4 years, my rape, my pregnancy, my kidnapping, and my baby being turned into a horcrux. And how ironic that all of that was caused by you in some way or another."

Hermione shook her head and turned to go and comfort Rosie. "I didn't turn Rosie into a horcrux!" Draco yelled, trying to defend himself but finding it very hard.

"Whatever!" Hermione yelled throwing her hand in the air and keeping her back to Draco. Draco let out a frustrated grunt and stormed out of the room. He threw the flap back on the tent and glanced over and Harry and Ron. They were both staring at him, but quickly turned their heads away when they noticed his facial expression. Draco let out another grunt as he realized that they had just heard Hermione and his argument. He stormed over to one of the trees and leaned against it sideways, placing his back on the camp. He rested his head on the tree and closed his eyes, whishing his head would stop pounding.

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_Sorry for the wait! I've been working like crazy lately and i really wanted to get this chapter perfect! i hope you guys liked it! please please please REVIEW! the more reviews the faster i'll upload... i promise!_


	36. thirty six: change of luck

_First things first: I'M SO SO SO SO SO SORRY! It took me so long to get this chapter up and where i ended it wasn't even where i wanted to end it at. I'm having the worst writers block ever and i just can't seem to get this chapter done. The reason i ended it here was because i didn't want to leave you guys waiting anymore. It NEVER takes me this long to update and i will try my hardest not to do it again. _

_Also, i have been getting a lot of reviews asking me why the group isn't just apparating out of the forest. The reason is that they don't know how to yet. When Hermione became pregnant, it was 5th year, so right now it's supposed to be 6th year for them. Hogwarts students don't learn how to apparate until their 6th year. That's the reason that they're not apparating anywhere. _

_Once again... I'M SORRY! _

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Hermione woke up the next morning and rubbed her eyes before she stretched her arms to the ceiling. She let out a yawn and then through her legs over the side of the bed. She placed her elbows on her knees and rubbed her eyes again, groaning from lack of sleep. She stood up and walked over towards the bassinet that Rosie was sleeping in, and froze. She panicked when she saw that Rosie wasn't in her bassinet and ran out through the flap of the tent as fast as she could. "Draco!" She yelled looking around for her friends.

"Hermione… shh." She turned towards her far right and saw Draco sitting with his back against a tree and Rosie in his lap, rocking her. She walked over towards him with her arms crossed, not looking Draco in the eye. "Harry and Ron went to go and check the perimeter were in to see if they could find a lake or any sign of a town."

"Give me Rosie, Draco." Hermione said holding out her arms.

Draco raised an eyebrow at her and smiled down at his daughter before looking back up at Hermione. "What? Am I not allowed to hold my daughter?"

"No… you're not. Now give me my baby!" Hermione yelled.

"Hermione, you have to be quiet. Harry and Ron are going to come running back thinking we've been attacked by the way your screaming."

"Oh, so you're calling them Harry and Ron now?"

"Of course. What else am I supposed to-" Draco froze mid sentence, realizing that Hermione must still be upset about last night's argument. "Are you really still upset about what happened last night?"

Hermione bit the side of her lip and crossed her arms, exhaling a deep breath. "I don't want to talk about this, Draco. Can I just have Rosie? I need to feed her."

Draco exhaled a deep breath and then handed Rosie to Hermione. Hermione quickly turned on her heel and headed back towards the tent. Draco rolled his eyes, not believing how she was acting over their dispute and turned to face the woods. As he turned, he smacked into something and fell onto his butt on the ground. He rubbed his head from the collision and looked up to see Harry standing over him with his arm outstretched and Ron sitting on the ground opposite him rubbing his bottom from when it hit the ground. "You okay?" Harry asked Draco.

"Yeah." Draco said grabbing Harry's hand and allowing him to help him up. Draco turned towards Ron as he was standing up. "What was that for by the way?"

"We heard Hermione yell and just figured that something was wrong." Ron said scratching the back of his neck and looking around the woods around them.

"Oh." Draco said turning and looking at the fire that was slowly dying from the night before.

"Nothing's wrong, right?" Harry said double checking.

"No." Draco said not taking his off the fire. "She's just…"

"Stubborn." Harry said finishing Draco's sentence with a smile.

"She won't let that one go mate, _trust_ me." Ron said walking over towards the fire and sitting down next to it, poking the ashes with a long stick.

Draco licked his lips then nodded. "What's the plan?" Draco asked before anybody else could bring up his and Hermione's argument.

"We think we saw a river but then we had to leave because we heard Hermione yell." Harry said looking in the direction that they had come running from.

"Is that our heading then?" Draco asked. Harry and Ron nodded and they quickly cleaned up around their camp, gave Hermione the plan, and then packed up and started heading for the river. Within a few minutes, they all had smiles on their faces as they reached the river and started to follow it.

They traveled in awkward silence. Harry was walking in the front, leading the group, with Ron and Hermione walking side by side behind him, and then Draco rounding out the back. Draco kept his distance until they saw the woods letting up and what looked like houses coming into view. "Is that a town?" Draco asked pushing past Ron and walking to stand next to Harry.

"Hopefully." Harry said quickening up his pace. When they reached the outskirts of the little muggle town, Draco took a good look around. "Recognize anything?"

Draco turned to Harry with a smile. "I think our luck has finally changed."

---------------------

Draco had recognized the town from the times he flew over with his broom. He was able to guide them to Diagon Alley with no problem, and by sunset, they were securely hidden behind one of the small unpopular shops. "What now?" Ron asked poking his head out from behind the building and taking a look down the streets.

"Wands?" Hermione asked as Draco nodded in agreement.

"How are we going to get you guys wands anyway?" Ron asked. "It's not like we can just waltz into Ollivanders and buy them. People are going to be looking out for us."

"We'll have to sneak in and hope Ollivander is on our side and won't turn us in." Draco said.

"Or that anybody inside will." Hermione said agreeing with Draco but not looking him in the eye since she was still mad at him for his comment the night before.

"We'll just have to take our chances." Harry said coming to the conclusion that they needed to get Hermione and Draco wands no matter the cost. "Who's going to go and get them?"

After a couple seconds of silence, Draco finally spoke. "I'll go."

"No, I will." Hermione said.

"You're crazy. You need to stay here for Rosie. She needs her mother."

"She needs her father too." Hermione snapped.

"Well she needs her mother more." Draco snapped back. As they argued, they didn't see Harry and Ron shake their heads and smile at the way they bickered at each other.

"You two argue like a married couple, you know that right?" Ron asked.

Draco and Hermione both glared at him and Ron through his hands up in defeat. Draco then turned back to Hermione. "I'm doing this. It's less dangerous for me to go. I'm a nobody. Harry is… Harry Potter, and you and Ron are Harry's best friends. If you go in there and there's a deatheater, they won't stop to catch you."

"And you think they'll stop for you. They know your one of us."

"It doesn't matter if they catch me. You three have spent the past 5 years defeating and conquering things together… without me. I think you can manage to go on without me." Draco said turning towards Ron and holding out his hand for Ron to let him borrow his wands.

"Draco!" Hermione yelled, mad that he wasn't listening to her.

Ron handed over his wand and Draco turned back to a pouting Hermione. "This isn't up for discussion. I'm going."

Draco turned to leave but stopped when he heard somebody speak. "Wait." Draco turned and saw Harry walking towards him. "I'm coming to. You're going to need somebody to watch your back."

"Thanks Potter, but I think it's best if you just stay here."

Harry opened his mouth to argue, but was interrupted by Ron. "Malfoy's right, Harry. I'll go."

Harry nodded and Ron turned to Draco, waiting for him to take the lead. "We'll be back in a jiffy." Draco said to Hermione. She only rolled her eyes and turned to Rosie who was stirring in her arms. Draco handed Ron back his wand. "Stay close behind me and watch out for anything suspicious. Keep your wand hidden though. We don't want to look like we're up to something." Ron nodded and with that they were walking at a fast pace out from behind the building and into the main street of Diagon Alley.

* * *

_It was short, i know. Like i said before, i just wanted to give you guys something so you didnt think i fell off the face of the earth. _

_Also, PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE REVIEW. Last chapter i only got like 2 reviews and i usually get about 10. To be honest, i think thats why it took me so long to update. I lost my motivation. So just please review. Even if it's a bad review, i'll take it. _


	37. thirty seven: malfoy's don't steal

_Last Chapter: Harry nodded and Ron turned to Draco, waiting for him to take the lead. "We'll be back in a jiffy." Draco said to Hermione. She only rolled her eyes and turned to Rosie who was stirring in her arms. Draco handed Ron back his wand. "Stay close behind me and watch out for anything suspicious. Keep your wand hidden though. We don't want to look like we're up to something." Ron nodded and with that they were walking at a fast pace out from behind the building and into the main street of Diagon Alley. _

* * *

Draco took the lead and stayed in the shadows as much as possible. When they reached the main street however, they realized that they weren't going to have to worry about any regular person seeing them and turning them in. Diagon Alley was practically empty. Every once in a while they would pass a couple that looked like they came to Diagon Alley for a good time but instead walked into a nightmare or a witch or wizard that looked suspicious and looked like they belonged to the dark side, which was when Ron gripped his wand tighter in his hand.

After a few minutes of walking at a fast pace, they turned the corner and before they stood Ollivanders. Draco, however, froze in his spot, causing Ron to bump into him. "What the-" Ron started but stopped when he saw Draco's reasoning. "Is that really Ollivanders?" Draco didn't answer Ron. Instead he started walking again, this time at a much slower pace, until he reached the boarded up building that used to supply all witches and wizards with their wands. "What do you think happened?" Ron asked looking around and making sure nobody was watching them.

"Death eaters most likely." Draco said yanking on the door but finding it was locked.

"Death eaters? Why would they do this to Ollivanders?"

"Let me see your wand." Draco said ignoring Ron's question and holding his hand out behind him as he examined the door. When he felt Ron's wand touch his hand he gripped it and then brought the tip towards the lock on the door. "Alohomora." Draco said quietly as he heard the door lock click. He turned the handle and pushed the door open. "Strange." Draco said walking in and looking the door up and down.

"What's strange?" Ron asked taking his wand back from Draco as he handed it to him.

"You would think Ollivander would of put more spells on the shop to keep people from doing what I just did and easily getting in here to steal wands." Draco said examing the room and making sure nobody was inside as Ron shut the door.

"Well if it was Death eaters then they wouldn't of cared much about all the inventory that he sells, would they?"

"No." Draco said simply, walking behind the desk and down into the isles of wands. "Do you know what kind of wand Hermione had? Maybe we can find something similar."

"Not to sure." Ron said watching Draco as he searched madly for a wand for himself. "Dragon heartstring maybe."

"Go try and find one for her. We need to get out of here quickly." Draco said not looking at Ron and examing the shelf and grabbing a wand that looked good for him.

"Why quickly?"

"Just go Weasley!" Draco yelled impatiently. Ron jumped back, muttered something about being rude, and then went down a couple more isles to find Hermione a wand. After a couple minutes of searching, Draco found one that was perfect for him and walked towards the front of the store to find Ron. "Are you done yet Weasley?" Draco yelled towards the back of the store.

"Bloody hell, I don't know what kind of wand to get for her!"

"Just grab a couple and lets go!" Draco yelled back, reaching into his pocket and taking out two of the galleons his mother gave him and placing them on the counter.

"What are you doing?" Draco heard Ron ask.

Draco looked up and saw Ron carrying several wand boxes in his arms and looking at Draco with raised eyebrows. "What?" Draco asked as Ron smiled at the fact that Draco was paying for the wands. "I'm not going to steal them. Malfoy's don't steal."

"Oh, so it's not okay for a Malfoy to steal, but it's okay for a Malfoy to commit murder?" Ron said as Draco rolled his eyes. As he rolled his eyes, he turned his attention to the door and noticed that it was slightly ajar. "You really have to get your priorities-"

"Shh." Draco said, putting his hand up to stop Ron from talking. "You did shut the door all the way, right?" Draco asked as Ron noticed what he was looking at. They both stared at each other, realizing that something was up. "Let's get out of here. Head for the back." Draco said quietly. As they quickly made their way down the aisles of the shop, they heard an explosion come from the front and started off in a fast sprint. "Do you see a door!" Draco yelled after Ron who was in the lead.

"No!" Ron yelled back, still carrying the several wands he grabbed for Hermione.

"Come out, Malfoy!" Draco heard somebody yell from the front of the store. "We know you're in here!"

Draco and Ron froze corned at the back of the room. "Shit." Draco said in a whisper. "Way to say my name Weasley."

"Way to say mine." Ron whispered back.

"This isn't time to argue. Take the wands out of the boxes. They'll be easier to carry." Ron nodded and set the wands down on a table and quickly picked them up from their boxes and held them tightly in one hand, his wand in the other hand.

"You're only making is harder on yourself Malfoy! You and your little friend are dead!" Draco started to panic as he heard the voices getting closer.

"Malfoy, look." Draco looked at Ron and saw that he was pointing to something down one of the isles. He stepped in front of Ron and saw that he was pointing to a window. Draco nodded at Ron and they quietly walked towards the window. They opened it slowly and Ron was the first to climb through. Just as Draco was about to take a step through, one of the death eater's came into view and cast a spell as Draco. Draco, however, saw it coming and casted a shield charm that sent the death eaters spell flying right back at him. Draco took the opportunity and jumped out the window and onto the dirt outside.

"Run." Draco said poiting down the back alley. Ron took the lead as they sprinted down the alley, turning every which way, trying to get away from the death eaters that would soon be hot on their trail. When they were finally hidden in the shadows of a tall building after a few minutes of running at a full sprint, they stopped to catch their breath.

"Where do you suppose we ended up?" Ron asked poking his head out from behind the building and into the street.

"Who knows." Draco said finally catching his breath.

"Hey, Malfoy, look. Is that Umbridge?" Ron asked keeping his attention on the street. Draco walked over towards Ron and poked his head out from behind the building to see what Ron was looking at. "Bloody hell, it is." Ron said surprised.

Draco shook his head as he looked at the old school professor. "What do you suppose she's doing in Diagon Alley?" Draco asked.

"She does work for the ministry, doesn't she?" Ron asked, not taking his eyes off Umbridge.

"Let's get closer. I want to hear what she's saying." Draco said stepping away from the back of the building and walking down the alley, getting into better view of Umbridge.

"What?!" He heard Ron ask as he came up behind Draco. "If she sees us were dead, you know that right?" Draco just ignored Ron and watch closely as Umbridge showed the witch she was talking to the necklace she wore around her neck. "I swear, I never understood why you and Harry were never friends. Well, actually, I don't really, but you two are so similar when it comes to getting in danger. I mean, who walks _towards_ the danger instead of-"

"Weasley, shut up!" Draco snapped through clenched teeth. Ron automatically stopped talking and crossed his arms over his chest in frustration and anger. Draco shook his head impatiently and turned to eavesdrop on what Umbridge was talking about.

"Old family heirloom." Draco heard Umbridge say.

"It's beautiful Dolores." The witch said examining the necklace around her neck. "Is it a locket?"

"A very old… very expensive locket." Umbridge said proudly, taking the locket off her neck and holding it out in front of her so the witch could get a better look.

"Hold on." Draco said, squinting his eyes so he could take a better look at the locket.

"What? What's wrong?" Ron said suddenly interested and taking a look at the locket himself. "It's just Umbridge talking about a piece of jewelry. What's so bloody great about that?"

"Because." Draco said smiling, finally realizing where he knew the locket from. "Do you know what locket that is?"

"It's Umbridge's 'family heirloom'." Ron said rolling his eyes and leaning his back against the wall, bored.

"Wrong Weasley." Draco said turning and smirking at Ron. "I recognize that locket, and it's not from her family."

"Then what is it?" Ron asked.

"That…" Draco said turning back and watching Umbridge as she said her goodbye's to the witch. "is Salazar Slytherin's locket."

* * *

_so i felt bad about how long it took me to write the last chapter that i woke up early this morning, put my thinking cap on, and wrote this before i had to go to work. another one should be up in a few hours!_

_please review! i'm officially begging you guys now! i mean i basically just gave you two chapters in one day and another one should be up soon as well. the least you could do is just push that button and review. please!_


	38. thirty eight: muggleborn examinations

_Last chapter: "Hold on." Draco said, squinting his eyes so he could take a better look at the locket._

_"What? What's wrong?" Ron said suddenly interested and taking a look at the locket himself. "It's just Umbridge talking about a piece of jewelry. What's so bloody great about that?"_

_"Because." Draco said smiling, finally realizing where he knew the locket from. "Do you know what locket that is?"_

_"It's Umbridge's 'family heirloom'." Ron said rolling his eyes and leaning his back against the wall, bored._

_"Wrong Weasley." Draco said turning and smirking at Ron. "I recognize that locket, and it's not from her family."_

_"Then what is it?" Ron asked._

_"That…" Draco said turning back and watching Umbridge as she said her goodbye's to the witch. "is the Slytherin Locket."_

* * *

"Where do you suppose they're at?" Hermione asked sitting on the ground and bouncing Rosie up and down gently on her knee to keep her calm. "Shouldn't they of been back by now?"

"I'm sure they're fine. Ron and Malfoy can take care of themselves." Harry said taking another look down the alley, trying to convince himself that what he was saying was true.

"They've been gone for over an hour." Hermione said glancing down the alley way at the same time Harry did.

"They're fine." Harry repeated. "So what caused that argument with you and Draco the other day?"

"Oh, Harry." Hermione said exhaling a deep breath. "You know bloody well what the argument was about. I know that you and Ron heard the whole thing."

"He wasn't doing it because he thinks you're weak Hermione. He was doing it because he doesn't want to see anything happen to you." Harry said looking at Hermione with seriousness written all over his face.

"You know, I never thought that I would see the day when Harry Potter took Draco Malfoy's side instead of mine." Hermione said slightly pissed off.

"I'm neutral Hermione." Harry said taking another look down the alley way.

"Neutral?" Hermione said with a sarcastic laugh. "Agreeing with-"

"Hermione look!" Harry said cutting Hermione off and standing up from the trash can he was sitting on. He pointed down the alley way and Hermione leaned over towards her side to get a better look down the alley. Sure enough, Draco and Ron were walking towards them with a spring in their step. Hermione stood up and walked over to stand next to Harry as Draco and Ron reached them. "Did you get them?" Harry asked.

Ron nodded and held out the wands he was carrying in his hand. "Wow." Hermione said looking at the wands with wide eyes. "Why did you get so many? One would have been just fine."

"Well we weren't sure which one would work for you. You know, with the whole 'the wand chooses the wizard' thing." Ron said making Hermione smile.

"Here." Draco said holding his hands out towards Rose. "Let me hold Rosie while you try out the wands."

Hermione turned towards Harry and held Rosie out towards him. "Can you hold Rosie for me, Harry?" Hermione asked smiling at him, pretending like she didn't even hear Draco speak.

"Are you serious." Draco said quietly, shaking his head at Hermione.

"Uh…" Harry said looking back from Hermione to Draco, not sure what to do.

"Please." Hermione said making her smile bigger. "It would be great help."

"I… uh…" Before Harry could make his decision, Hermione thrust Rosie into Harry hands and then grabbed the wands from Ron's. "Sure." Harry said sarcastically, looking at Draco with an I'm sorry look on his face.

When Hermione had her back turned, trying out the different wands to see which one worked best for her, Draco held his hands out towards his daughter and Harry gladly handed her over. Draco smiled down at Rosie and she smiled back, reaching her hands up to grab his pointed chin.

"So what took you guys so long?" Harry asked.

"Oh!" Ron said just realizing that they had important information to tell Harry and Hermione. "Well we kind of ran into a death eater at Ollivanders."

"You what?" Hermione asked, turning around and frowning when she saw that Draco was holding Rosie.

"We were getting ready to leave when Draco noticed the door was open. We ran towards the back of the store just as the death eater came in. We managed to escape through a window in the back." Ron finished.

"Wait." Harry said confused. "Wasn't Ollivander there? I mean, how did you get so many wands."

"Ollivander wasn't there." Draco said joining in the conversation. "The place was all boarded up. We had to break in."

"Boarded up?" Hermione asked.

"Yeah, I think it was deatheaters. That's the only thing that makes sence in my book. I mean, why wouldn't they wand Ollivander."

"Why would they want him?" Ron asked, not understanding.

"His wands?" Harry guessed.

"Exactly." Draco said smiling back down at Rosie. "Ollivander has been making wands for centuries. Not to mention that he's on our side. Not only would Voldemort have _our_ wand maker, but he would also have an unlimited supply of wands if anything happens to a death eaters wand."

Everybody nodded in agreement, then Harry asked another question. "Did they know it was you guys who broke into the store?"

Draco glared at Ron who glared back at him. "It wasn't my bloody fault!" Ron said defending himself.

"What wasn't you're fault?" Hermione asked, finally deciding on a light brown wand for herself and placing the extras inside of the bag with the tent.

"It was so you're fault Weasley!" Draco snapped back. "If you didn't say my name about a million times then they wouldn't have know that it was me and you inside of the store. Because of you the deatheaters now know that we're here in Diagon Alley."

"First of all, they only knew that it was you… not me. And secondly, that deatheater chasing us ending up being a good thing anyway." Ron said, his voice getting high pitched at the end from arguing. Ron cleared his throat and shook his head as Draco smirked and laughed at Ron's voice.

"Nice voice. I think I'm going to start calling you Weaselette instead of Weasel." Draco said.

"Shut it, Malfoy." Ron said as his face turned red with embarrassment.

"Will you two stop arguing. Now, what were you talking about. What good thing came from a death eater discovering that we're here."

Ron looked at Draco. "You tell him, oh wise one!"

"I think we might of found our first horcrux." Draco said ignoring Ron's comment.

"What?" Hermione asked shocked. "Already?"

Draco looked at her and nodded. "Where?" Harry asked. "Do you have it?"

"No, not us. Not yet at least. Umbridge has it."

"Umbridge?" Hermione asked making sure that she heard him right.

"Yeah. She was talking to this witch an she was showing her a necklace she was wearing. She was calling it an old family heirloom. But when she took it off so the witch could really look at it, I got a good look at it and saw that it really didn't belong to the Umbridge family at all."

"What was it?" Harry asked, growing impatient.

"Salazar Slytherin's locket."

Hermione gasped with excitement and Harry had a small smile plastered on his face. "Are you sure that that's a horcrux?" Harry asked Draco.

"I'm guessing. But it only makes sense. Why wouldn't Voldemort make something that belonged to Slytherin himself one of his horcruxes." Draco said stating his guess.

"But what if it's not?" Ron asked.

"What if it is?" Hermione asked wondering the opposite as Ron but already knowing what he was thinking.

"If it is a horcrux and we don't go after it now while we know where it is and who has it, then we might lose it and then we'll be down one horcrux. And if it's not, then we'll just have a piece of Hogwarts history and no harm done. We need to go after this thing now." Draco said making it clear that they needed to move and quickly.

"I agree." Said Harry. "But how are we going to find her?"

They sat in silence for a few minutes, all thinking about how they were going to retrieve the locket from a person who they didn't even know how to get to. "Doesn't she still work for the Ministry?" Ron asked, thinking out loud.

"Yeah, but how does that help us Weasley?" Draco asked, becoming frustrated with their lack of ideas.

"Don't get snappy with me, Malfoy! I'm just trying to help." Ron snapped back. Harry and Hermione rolled their eyes, finding the way that Ron and Draco argued beginning to grow annoying and old quickly. Hermione exhaled a deep breath in frustration and walked over towards one of the trashcans. She opened up the lid and retrieved one of the old Daily prophets. "What are you doing?" Ron asked Hermione.

Hermione put the lid back on the trash can and took a seat, flipping the dirty and soggy pages of the old Daily Prophet. "I haven't read anything in months, okay Ronald?" Hermione said not taking her eyes off the paper.

"Do you really this is a time for reading?" Ron asked, but Hermione didn't hear what he said. Instead, she became focused on one of the articles of the paper. She flipped to the front page and looked at the date, then turned back to the paper with a determined and satisfied look on her face.

"What's wrong, Hermione?" Harry asked, knowing that when Hermione got that look while reading something, she had something important on her mind.

"They're rounding up muggleborns at the ministry." Hermione said quietly as she continued to read the article.

"What?" All three boys said at once.

"It says here that all muggleborns must report to the ministry for examinations."

"Examinations?" Ron asked looking around to see if anybody understood.

"Listen." Hermione snapped so Ron would stop talking. "It says: All muggleborns must report to the Ministry of Magic, level 7, muggle affairs, by tomorrow between the hours of 10 a.m. and 3 p.m. for wand and magic examinations."

"Are they crazy?" Ron said shaking his head.

"All muggleborns who do not show will be placed under the Ministry of Magic's most wanted list and when found will receive the appropriate punishment for the situation." Hermione finished, but still scanned the paper.

"They bloody mad! Wand and magic examinations?"

"Death eaters must be behind it." Draco said.

"They're going to round up muggleborns and take them out one by one.'" Harry said softly, understanding.

"What do you suppose they'll do to them?" Ron asked.

"Oblivate?" Harry asked to know one in particular.

"No." Draco said. "Some might get lucky and just lose their memory, but I'm sure most of them will be tortured or killed. You can't put a muggleborn in front of a deatheater and expect them to just erase their memory and let them go without any blood being shed."

"Well we have to do something. We can't just sit around and let all those muggleborns be killed and tortured." Ron said standing up, feeling a sudden string of bravery.

"Sit down Weasley." Draco said as he rolled his eyes at Ron. "We're just three underage wizards and one underage witch who have an infant with them. What could we possibly do to stop an entire Ministry along with an army of deatheaters? We might as well just hand ourselves in now."

"Why don't you just make us sound like a bunch of dumb animals who have no clue what they're doing, Draco?" Hermione asked. "And besides, we're not just three underage wizards and one underage witch who have an infant with them. We're three wizards and one witch who stood up against all odds and fought for our lives on number of occasions. We're strong and we can do anything we put our mind to, even if we have an infant with us."

"Do you have a plan, Hermione?" Harry asked.

"You bet I do. And you guys won't believe who's leading the muggleborn examinations." Hermione said with a huge smile.

"Who?"

"Dolores Jane Umbridge."

* * *

_please review! i dont want to have to be like one of those authors who doesnt upload until she gets like 10 reviews because thats just mean. dont make me do that!_


	39. thirty nine: just us

_Last Chapter: "Do you have a plan, Hermione?" Harry asked._

_"You bet I do. And you guys won't believe who's leading the muggleborn examinations." Hermione said with a huge smile._

_"Who?"_

_"Dolores Jane Umbridge."_

* * *

Hermione rolled her eyes and crossed her arms, placing the dirty daily prophet under her arm as she listened to the boys complain about how she wasn't going to go through with what her plan was. "Hermione, that's practically suicide." Ron said throwing his arms into the air.

"Suicide or not, we have no choice. How else are we going to get to Umbridge?"

"Not that way." Draco said agreeing with what Ron was saying. "You can't just walk into the ministry of magic and not expect to be recognized."

"Im going to be recognized, Draco." Hermione snapped. "That's the point of me going. I'm _muggleborn_. It makes sense for me to be going to the _muggleborn_ examinations."

"There's going to be death eaters swarming all over the Ministry." Draco said standing up and approaching Hermione so he could speak to her more privately.

"I disagree."

"You what?" Ron asked, confused as to why death eaters wouldn't be swarming the Ministry by now, especially with the muggle examinations going on.

"Voldemort hasn't taken over the Ministry yet. The Ministry is still neutral. If I walk into the ministry I'll be recognized by the death eaters but they won't be able to do anything with all everybody around, especially since some of those people are on our side. I'll be safe."

"Safe?" Draco asked, becoming frustrated that she was actually being serious about her plan. "You'll be a sitting duck."

"I have to do this." Hermione said.

"Why you? Why can't me, Harry, or Ron go?" Draco asked switching Rosie to his other arm.

Hermione exhaled a deep breath and crossed her arms tighter against her chest in frustration. "Ron can't go because people know him inside of the Ministry because of his family. Harry can't go because he's Harry Potter. He's too easily spotted. And you can't go because of what happened at the grocery store. We had to use magic to get out of it so the ministry would have had to get involved. They spotted you on our way out so once the ministry ask who it was, all the police have to do is describe you and they'll know easily who it was. And besides, none of you are muggleborn, so it wouldn't work anyway."

"Wait… how will they know it was me so easily?"

"Seriously, Draco? How many kids our age have bright blond hair and silver eyes." Hermione said with a stupid smile on her face.

Draco bit the side of his lip but didn't say anything. She was right, but he didn't want to admit that. Admitting that she was right was like telling her that she was right about the whole plan and that would make it seem like he agreed with her, and he certainly didn't agree with her.

"But what about once you get inside of the room? Once you're inside of enemy territory it's not going to be safe anymore." Ron asked, jumping back into the conversation.

"They're not going to attack me with all those muggleborns sitting right there. The muggleborns think that they're there for wand and magic examinations. They don't know that deatheaters are going to be the ones running the whole thing. The only time I'll be in real danger is when I'm in the room with Umbridge. But that's the most important part. If I just watch my back, then it'll be a piece of cake."

"How is it a piece of cake?" Harry asked, finally joining into the conversation.

"Well when I go in the room with the other muggleborns, they're obviously going to be taking our wands away. But I won't have to worry about that."

"Why?" Ron asked.

"Because, Ron. You grabbed all those extra wands from Ollivanders. All I have to do is take them with me, and if my wands get taken away, I'll have a spare."

"Then what?" Harry asked, anxious to hear the rest of Hermione's plan.

"Once I'm in the room with Umbridge, I'll just have to take out the extra wand and disarm Umbridge before she even knew what hit her. I'll take the necklace from her and I'll be out of the Ministry before any of the deatheaters have time to think." Hermione said with a confident smile. "I'm going to need a good wash before hand though. I look like I spent months in a dungeon." Hermione said causing Ron to snort at how true her statement was.

Hermione watched Harry as he glanced down at the ground in deep thought. Draco kept his eyes on Hermione, wishing and hoping that Harry wouldn't agree with this plan. Ron just looked back and forth from Harry to Hermione.

Harry glanced up and Hermione and licked his lips. Draco turned just in time to see Harry nod his head yes. "What!" Draco yelled, not believing that this was actually happening. Hermione smiled triumphantly and uncrossed her arms, placing the Prophet back inside the trash can. "Potter, you can't be serious!" Draco yelled.

"What other choice do we have, Malfoy?" Harry said sticking his hands in his pockets. "You said it yourself. We have to go after the necklace before it's too late and we can't ever find it again."

"But…" Draco bit his lip and looked around at Ron for help.

Ron just shrugged and Draco watched as Hermione placed her wands in her back pocket of her jeans and headed towards the forest that they had come from. "I'm going to go find that lake we passed on our way here and wash up." Hermione said turning around and facing them, then quickly turning back around and walking towards the forest again.

Draco quickly turned to Harry and held Rosie out for him to take. Harry looked confused but grabbed Rosie anyway and Draco ran off after Hermione. He caught up with her easily and grabbed her hand to stop her from walking. She shot him a dirty look and yanked her hand out from his grip, then continued walking. "Hermione, please…" Draco said, grabbing her hand again. "You don't have to do this." He said, spinning her around and placing his arms around her in a hug so she couldn't get away.

"Let me go!" Hermione yelled through clenched teeth as she placed her hands on his chest and tried to push her body out of his arms.

"Why are you doing this?" Draco asked letting her go and chasing after her as she stormed farther into the woods. Hermione didn't answer. She stopped when she reached the edge of the small lake and kneeled down. She cupped her hands together and placed them in the water and watched as the cool fresh water flowed into her hands. She smiled and pressed the puddle of water to her face, rubbing her dirt and sweat off. "Hermione, please don't ignore me." Draco said standing behind her with his arms crossed.

"Because I can handle it." Hermione said quietly, not really wanting Draco to hear her.

She went to place her hands back in the water, but felt a set of hands grab her arm and pull her up from her kneeling position. Draco pulled her close to him and held her wet hands in his. "What did you say?" He asked studying her face. Hermione bit her lip and turned her head to the side, looking out into the woods. Draco closed his eyes and lowered his head to the ground, shaking it. "Please don't make this about what I said. I was wrong and I'm sorry."

Hermione turned and looked at him. She rolled her eyes in disgust and pulled her hands from his. She kneeled back down on the ground and splashed another puddle of water into her face. "This isn't about you Draco. Not everything revolves around Draco Malfoy."

"Since when have I thought that everything revolves around me?" Draco asked crossing his arms again and looking around the woods. He turned back around and saw that Hermione was staring at him with a raised eyebrow. "What?" He snapped. Hermione shook her head and turned back to the water. "Okay, fine. I was selfish when I was younger, but I'm not anymore."

"Sure." Hermione said sarcastically, standing up after finishing watching her face and hair. She turned to Draco and looked him deep in the eyes so he understood that she wasn't lying to him. "I'm doing this because I need to, not because I want to. I need to get that locket from Umbridge because if I don't then we'll be farther away from destroying horcruxes. And if were farther away from destroying horcruxes then we're farther away from figuring out how to save Rosie from continuing to be a horcrux." Draco exhaled a deep breath and shook his head in disagreement. "I'm doing this for all the lives that are going to be lost if we don't, I'm doing this for Ron so he can see his family again… all of them, I'm doing this for Harry because Harry can't carry everything on his shoulders, I'm doing this for Rosie because she didn't choose to have the life she's living, and I'm doing this for us." Hermione finished with a smile. Draco turned to her and looked at her confused. "I want everything with us to be like how it was in Hogwarts. No Voldemort, no deatheaters, no horcruxes." Hermione turned her back on Draco and stared at the lake. "Just us." She said to herself.

Draco didn't know what to say. He walked up behind Hermione and wrapped his arms around her in a hug, resting his chin on her shoulder. Hermione shook her head and pushed him off of her. She then turned back towards the direction of Harry and Ron and walked away, tears pouring from her eyes.

* * *

_So i'm dedicating this chapter to Alina290 so she knows how sorry i am for what i said at the end of my last chapter. When i said that i wasn't going to update until i got a certain amount of reviews... i was just kidding. I would never do that to you guys! I personally HATE it when writers do that, so if i did that i would just be one big fat hippocrit. i'm sorry if any of you guys thought i was serious when i said that. _

_on the brighter side: has everybody seen the new hp trailer? if your a huge draco fan like i am you'll love it because he's in it like 5 times! yay! anyway if you haven't seen it yet go to youtube and search for: Harry Potter and the half blood prince (5th trailer). it's great... take my word for it!_

_remember to review please!_


	40. fourty: precise moment

_Last Chapter: "I want everything with us to be like how it was in Hogwarts. No Voldemort, no deatheaters, no horcruxes." Hermione turned her back on Draco and stared at the lake. "Just us." She said to herself._

_Draco didn't know what to say. He walked up behind Hermione and wrapped his arms around her in a hug, resting his chin on her shoulder. Hermione shook her head and pushed him off of her. She then turned back towards the direction of Harry and Ron and walked away, tears pouring from her eyes._

* * *

They all woke up the next morning around the same time. Hermione woke up first and quickly starting getting herself ready. She used her wand and cleaned her clothes the best she could with the spells she knew, then went and grabbed something quick to eat from the bag of food. As she was fixing her hair by throwing it up in a loose pony tail, Harry woke up and greeted her with a sweet hello. Hermione merely smiled back and then grabbed the spare wand she was going to need for later and stuck it under her bra strap on her back, making sure it was secure and wouldn't fall out.

As Ron was coming out of the tent to join Hermione and Harry around the fire they had made in the woods the night before, Rosie started crying, letting everybody know she was awake. Hermione walked inside the tent and grabbed her daughter, smiling at her and kissing her forehead, then took her behind the tent to feed her baby. When she came back to the burnt out fire, she noticed that Draco had now joined the group, and all three boys sat in a circle, all zoned out on the ground below them and slowly placing little bits of food in their mouth.

Hermione licked her lips and then exhaled a deep breath, walking over and standing in the circle her friends has made around the fire. They all sat in silence, thinking about what they were about to attempt, or rather what they were about to let Hermione attempt. Hermione finally cleared her throat, causing all the boys to look at her. "I was thinking that I should go early."

"I was thinking that you shouldn't go at all." Draco muttered under his breath, shoving another piece of his small breakfast into his mouth.

Hermione ignored Draco and turned to Harry and Ron. "If I go early I might be able to save some of the muggleborns from going in. And not to mention that if they're expecting an attack of some sort, they would least expect it in the morning. Right now would be my best bet."

"I agree." Harry said as Ron nodded, not wanting to take sides even though he agreed with Draco and thought that this was too risky for Hermione. "The sooner we can get this over with the better."

"I can't believe you're agreeing with this Potter." Draco said standing up and pointing at Hermione. "She's only doing it because of what I said to her the other day!"

"That is not true!" Hermione snapped defending herself with somewhat of a lie.

"You heard our argument." Draco said walking closer to Hermione. "She's doing this to prove me wrong and she's only going to end up hurting herself in the long run."

"I am not going to hurt myself Draco. And I'm not doing this to prove you wrong! I already told you last night why I was doing this!" Hermione said turning her body towards Draco and bouncing Rosie up and down as she started to cry when Draco raised his voice.

"I asked her last night why she was doing this." Draco said turning towards Harry and ignoring Hermione. "She said, and I quote: 'because I can handle it'." Hermione rolled her eyes and exhaled a deep breath, turning around and walking into the tent. "Those were my words. I was the one who said I didn't want her to know because she couldn't handle it. And even though I apologized," Draco said turning back towards the tent and yelling the word apologized so Hermione could hear that word clearly. "she still refuses to stop acting like a child and is now putting herself at risk, and in the long run… Rosie"

Harry put his head in his hands as Hermione walked out of the tent and stormed over to Draco, carrying Rosie in one hand and the sling Draco made for Hermione to carry Rosie in, in another hand. She grabbed the sling and through it over Draco's shoulder, then opened it up and placed Rosie inside. "Since I'm a child I guess I can't take care of a newborn, right?" Hermione said quickly to Draco, and then turned towards Harry and Ron with a smile. Harry stood up and Hermione walked over to him and wrapped her arms around him in a hug. "I'll be back soon, okay?"

"Please be careful Hermione." Harry said giving her a warm smile, which she returned gladly.

She nodded and then turned to Ron, giving him a hug as well. "Don't eat all the food, okay?" Ron let out a little chuckle and Hermione gave him a quick kiss on the cheek. Hermione then turned and walked towards Draco. She looked him in the eye, but he wasn't looking at her. He was biting his lips together and was staring up at the sky in frustration. Hermione looked down at Rosie and gave her a kiss on the forehead. "Mommy will be back soon. And when I get back we're going to figure out a way to get rid of the horcrux in you, okay?" Rosie smiled lightly up at Hermione and tried to grab her nose, but Hermione lifted her head and looked up at Draco. When he didn't look at her, she bit her lip, shook her head, and then gave Draco a quick kiss on the cheek, and then turned towards the direction she knew Diagon alley to be.

Hermione inhaled a deep breath and then turned and started walking towards what she knew was going to be one of the hardest things she was ever going to attempt.

-------------------------------------------

Hermione smiled politely at every witch and wizard she made eye contact with in the Ministry's main lobby. She got some strange looks, almost like people recognized her, but nobody approached her. She followed the signs that helped point her way towards the seventh level for wand and magic examinations.

When she reached the floor, she saw a line formed by a small desk sitting out in the hallway. The line had about five frightened muggleborns waiting in it and Hermione instantly regretted putting her hair up because now she had nothing to hide her familiar face in. Standing next to the line with their hands hidden inside their pockets stood what was obviously two death eaters.

As she made her way towards the line, she slowly undid the hair tie and let her loose and poofy curls fall over her face. She kept her head low to the ground and watched the deatheaters from the corner of her eye. Lucky for her, they weren't paying much attention to who was getting in line. Hermione smiled mentally thinking that her idea to come early was a good one. She slowly made her way up the line and within a few minutes she stood before a lady at the desk smiling up at her. "Name?" The lady asked.

"Hermione Granger." Hermione said quietly so that the deatheaters watching over the line couldn't hear her. The lady turned to her list and flipped a couple of pages until she reached the G's, then tapped Hermione's name with her wand and it instantly became highlighted. The smiling lady turned back to Hermione and held her hand out. "We're just going to need your wand so we can check it. You'll get it back before you leave." Hermione nodded but didn't smile back. She handed her wand over to the lady, hoping that the lady wouldn't check it to make sure it was the same wand she had always had before it was taken from her over the summer. The lady placed the wand inside of a drawer and placed a label with Hermione's name on it. "You can just go inside the door to you're right. They'll call you momentarily."

Hermione smiled back, nodded, and then walked through the door to sit and wait for them to call her name.

----------------------------------------

Draco sat down on one of the chairs in the tent with his elbows resting on his knees and his fingers running through his bleach blond hair. He had put Rosie in her bed right after Hermione had left and she had fallen asleep instantly, worn out from crying during the yelling that happened just that morning.

Draco's mind raced as he thought about what could be happening to Hermione right now. What if somebody had recognized her? What if she was in the hands of deatheaters? What if she got in there and then wasn't able to get the locket from Umbridge? Draco exhaled a deep breath and then stood up. He walked outside and grabbed the bag of food, then brought it back inside and placed it in front of him, ignoring the calls from Ron telling him to bring back the food. He sat back down on the chair and started rummaging through the bag, wondering what kind of food the house elves put in there in the first place.

As he rummaged through, he spotted something shiny and looked at it curiously. He stuck his head closer to the bag to get a better look and reached in to grab it. He wrapped his fingers around the silver band and placed it in the palm of his hand. He brought his hand out of the bag and released his fingers, letting a small silver ring fall into the palm of his hand. He placed it in his fingers and remembered instantly what it was.

His grandmother had passed away when he was 9 and had given her wedding ring to his mother, seeing as she had no use for it anymore. Draco's mother treasured the ring like it was her own wedding ring, so when Draco's mother punished him one day, Draco took his revenge out on the ring. He went into his mother's jewelry box and stole the ring, taking it into the kitchen and shoving it in a dirty old bag that he found lying under the counter, knowing that that would be the last place she would look.

Draco smiled slightly, remembering what he did, as he examined the ring more closely. It had a small diamond on it, too small for his taste, but just right for what he knew his grandmother used to like. Draco shook his head and glanced back down at the bag that he found the ring in, not believing that now… out of all time, he was finding the ring.

He stood up and placed the ring in his pocket, sliding in from one finger to the next. He looked down at Rosie from where he was standing and smiled. It was then he remembered what his mother had said to him before he had left her. Everything happens for a reason.

Draco's smile grew as he nodded and bit the side of his lip. He walked out of the tent and turned towards Harry and Ron. "Watch Rosie for me." He said, and then turned and started heading in the direction Hermione had gone only moment ago. He ignored the calls he was getting from Harry and Ron telling him to come back and asking where he was going. He had his mind set on where he was going and what he was going to do.

Everything does happen for a reason. Draco's grandmother had given Draco's mother her ring, enabling him to take it when he needed to get revenge on her, allowing him to hide in the one place that he would forget about and wouldn't look until now… until the precise moment, until the right opportunity.

Draco smiled as he finally understood and as he made his way towards the Ministry of Magic, level seven.

* * *

_Any ideas as to what Draco is about to do? _

_Next chapters going to be intense!_

_Remember to review! The more reviews the sooner i'll update... i swear!_


	41. fourty one: you're so cliche

_Last Chapter: Everything does happen for a reason. Draco's grandmother had given Draco's mother her ring, enabling him to take it when he needed to get revenge on her, allowing him to hide in the one place that he would forget about and wouldn't look until now… until the precise moment, until the right opportunity._

_Draco smiled as he finally understood and as he made his way towards the Ministry of Magic, level seven._

* * *

The room looked like the waiting room in a muggle doctor's office. The walls were painted grey with pictures of young witches and wizards all over the room, casting spells at each other and following the rules of their teachers that were standing next to them. Chairs lined the walls and sat in rows in the middle of the floor. Hermione made her way to the back of the room and took a seat in the corner where she'd least likely be seen.

She took a seat and sat on the edge of her chair, trying not to move so that they wand she had under her bra strap wouldn't come loose and her plan would be ruined. She watched as muggleborn after muggleborn walked into the room and Hermione couldn't help but wonder what was actually happening to them. They couldn't actually be killing muggleborns in the Ministry, could they? The Ministry wasn't outrun yet but deatheaters. Sure, by the looks of it, they had a majority of the place, but there were still good guys walking around the Ministry. Somebody would have recognized if all the muggleborns just disappeared.

She noticed after a while that none of them were coming out, and her heart started to race at the fact that what she thought wasn't true… might actually be true. "Granger! Hermione Granger!" Hermione's heart started to race more as the desk clerk called her. She inhaled a deep breath and made her way over to the lady, trying to keep herself together and her nerves down. The lady glanced at Hermione when she was standing in front of her. She looked Hermione up and down and then waved her hand at Hermione. "Follow me."

The lady led Hermione through a door and closed it firmly behind her once Hermione was through, then led her down a long hallway. They stopped once as a tall man in a black cloak cut them off and went into another room, followed closely by a scared looking witch, who only looked a couple years older then Hermione.

Once the girl passed, the lady led Hermione only a couple more feet and pointed at a door. "Through that door there. You'll be meeting with Dolores Umbridge first and then you're examinations will begin." The lady said in a nasty voice, turning on her heel and quickly walking back towards the other door.

Hermione put her hand on the handle, closed her eyes, inhaled a deep breath, and then walked through the door. Hermione recognized her old school professor right away as she closed the door and walked into the cozy room to take a seat at the chair across from Umbridge's desk. The coziness of the room left as Hermione glanced at the two obvious deatheater's standing by Umbridge's side.

Hermione licked her lips and glanced back into Umbridge's eyes as she made her too familiar chuckle and smiled at Hermione. "Miss Hermione Granger, is it?" She asked. Hermione just nodded, watching the deatheaters out of the corner of her eye. She couldn't help but notice one of the deatheaters stir at the mention of her name, and Hermione became more nervous then ever. She prayed that they didn't recognize her. "I taught you last year at Hogwarts, did I not?"

"Yes, ma'am you did." Hermione said with a slight smile.

Umbridge nodded and glanced down at her desk, flipping through some papers that were laid out in a folder. As she did, Hermione took a quick glance at the locket that Umbridge was wearing proudly around her neck and let a little smile cross her lips as she recognized it too. Her smile quickly faded as Umbridge looked back up at Hermione with her toad like smile plastered on her face.

Before Umbridge could say anything, Hermione quickly reached behind her and yanked the spare wand our from under her bra. She shot a quick stupefy at one of the deatheaters and then yelled pertrificus totalus at the other, knocking him to the floor, not able to move a muscle. She then pointed her wand at Umbridge who was about to curse Hermione. "Expelliarmus!" Umbridge's wand went flying from her hand and landed on the other side of the room, out of reach.

Umbridge stood with her hands up in surrender, looking at Hermione with a confused expression on her face. "I don't know what you think you are doing, Miss Granger, but I can assure you-"

"Give me your locket." Hermione said, cutting her off, wand shaking violently in her hand from nerves. Umbridge just stared back at her, opening her mouth to speak. "I said give me your locket!" Hermione yelled louder before Umbridge could speak.

Umbridge's face suddenly got very serious and she bit her lips, looking frustrated at Hermione. "I don't know what your think you're going to accomplish by doing this."

"It doesn't matter what you think. Just give me the locket!" Hermione said taking another step towards Umbridge with her wand extended towards her. "I swear I'll curse you to next week if you don't give it to me now." Umbridge nodded and slowly reached behind her, unclipping the locket and holding it out for Hermione to take. "Lay it on the desk!" Hermione ordered, and Umbridge slowly did what she was told.

Hermione reached over and grabbed the locket, not taking her eyes off Umbridge. She stuffed the locket in her front pocket of her jeans and started walking backwards towards the door. "If you think you're going to be away with this… you are mistaken." Umbridge said through her teeth.

"We'll see." Hermione said taking one last look at Umbridge. "Pertrificus totalus!" Hermione yelled the final curse directly at Umbridge, sending her falling over to the ground, completely motionless.

Hermione quickly made her way out of the door and as she was walking down the hallway at a quick pace, she heard a scream coming from the door that the girl had gone in earlier and then heard a deep man yell: "Oblivate!" Hermione froze in her spot with her mouth open, not believing what she just heard or that they we're actually doing this to muggleborns. They were erasing their memories!

Hermione came out of her thoughts as she heard the door that held Umbridge open. She turned around and saw the deatheater that she had knocked unconscious came walking out of the door holding his head. They both locked eyes with each other and then Hermione ran as fast as she could down the hallway. "Get back here mudblood!"

Hermione opened the door quickly and slammed it shut after her. She pointed her wand at the door and yelled: "Colloportus!", then turned to the lady who was now standing at the desk with her wand pointed at Hermione. Before the lady could curse Hermione, she casted a quick stupefy, knocking the lady into the wall behind her.

Hermione turned to all the confused muggleborns in the room. "Run! Get out of here!" They all looked back at her confused. "Didn't you hear me? I said-" Hermione was cut off as she felt a body slam into the door she was pressing her body against. She let out a squeal as she felt the deatheater hit the door again. "Do you want to loose you're memories? This isn't some damn examination! It's deatheaters and they're going to oblivate all of you if you don't get out of here now!" Hermione finished with a yell.

The muggleborns looked back and fourth from each other, confused and not sure whether to believe Hermione or not. Hermione opened her mouth to say something again, but felt the deatheater slam into the door and this time, the door actually came off its hinges, knocking Hermione to the ground.

The room filled with screams as all the muggleborns realized that Hermione was telling the truth. Hermione quickly stood up and pushed her way through all the muggleborns, staying low and making her way to the door. The confusion helped her to escape to the room, but once she left, it only made it worse.

She pushed her way out of the crowd and followed what few muggleborns were smart enough to leave with her. As she emerged into the hallway, the two deatheaters that we're standing guard by the door noticed what was happening instantly, and one of them ran straight for Hermione.

She cast a spell at him, but missed as he quickly ducked and jumped towards Hermione, wrapping his hands around her ankle as she turned to run. She fell to the ground, smacking her head on the ground, but she easily shook it off and turned towards the deatheater that still had his hands wrapped around her ankle. Hermione glared at him and he glared back, but then his expression changed. "You!" He said, looking shocked as he looked at Hermione. "You're the one who escaped the Dark Lord! You're Potter's mudblood! You're-" Hermione didn't let him finish. She brought her free foot back and with all the force she had, slammed it into the deatheater's face.

He let out a cry of pain as he grabbed his obvious broken nose with both his hands and Hermione was able to get free. She stood up quickly and made her way down the hallway as fast as her legs would carry her. She choose to dive down every hallway she saw, changing up her direction so that the deatheaters wouldn't be able to locate her again. This turned out to be a bad idea, because she easily got lost.

As she rounded one of the corners, she stopped and leaned against one of the walls to catch her breath. She closed her eyes, but discovered that, just like getting herself lost, this was a big mistake. She heard somebody yell and she quickly opened her eyes and saw a deatheater coming right for her, wand pointing at her.

Hermione pressed her body off the wall and dove into the nearest door, just missing the spell that the deatheater cast at her. She looked around the room and discovered that she was in some sort of library. She quickly took refuge behind one of the many shelves of books as she heard the deatheater walk inside. "Come out, mudblood! I'm going to find you anyway… you might as well make it easier on yourself and just surrender."

Hermione tried to steady her breath as she looked around for an escape. As she searched, her eyes caught one of the book titles. _Common Apparation Mistakes and How to Avoid Them. _She smiled to herself as she quietly reached for the book and placed it under her arm, thinking that learning to apparate would be helpful to them in the future…, just as long as she could get out of this alive. Hermione stuck her head out and saw that the deatheater was walking around and peering down all the shelves, looking for her.

Hermione suddenly had an idea and crouched down low. She pointed her wand towards one of the shelves and whispered: "Reducto.", causing the shelf to fall over and cause a distraction, just like at the muggle grocery store. The deatheater quickly turned towards the shelf and Hermione stood up, cursing him with a body bind and then running out of the door.

She made her way down the long hallway and froze when she came to an intersection. She could go right or left, both which didn't look very promising, or she could go straight, which would just lead her to an elevator. Hermione decided that the elevator would be her best bet, seeing as it could take her to the lobby. She walked over towards the elevator and pushed the button impatiently, watching her back and making sure nobody was coming. She heard the door beep and then open, and then walked in, keeping her eyes on the hallway behind her.

As she stepped into the elevator she felt a pair of hands wrap around her in a hug and she let out a scream, pushing away from the man holding her. "Let me go!" Hermione yelled pushing and hitting him, but he only laughed lightly, and then Hermione realized that she recognized that laugh, and stopped hitting the man and stared into his silver eyes. "Draco?"

"Hi, Hermione." He said with a smile, squeezing her tightly back into a hug.

"Wh- what are you doing here? Where's Rosie? What did you do with Rosie?!?" Hermione said becoming loud.

Draco just smiled at her. "Relax. I'm not that irresponsible. Harry and Ron are watching her."

"I can't believe you! You didn't trust me to do this on my own so you came here to help me. Well, for your information, I got the locket." Hermione reached into her pocket and pulled the Slytherin locket, holding it up for Draco to see, and then placing it back in her pocket just as fast.

"I'm happy you got it, but I didn't come here to-"

"I can't believe you. You really think that I can't take care of myself. And even though you said that you were sorry…"

"Hermione-"

"You know what, Draco. It doesn't matter because I proved to you that I can do this on my own and I don't need you're help. And another thing…"

"Hermione, I'm trying to tell you some-"

"I don't care what you have to say, Draco. I-" Hermione stopped mid-sentence as Draco's lips locked with hers.

"You don't know when to stop." Draco said with a smile when he released the kiss.

"If you think that that kiss is going to make everything okay, then you're wrong." Hermione said, somewhat light headed from the kiss.

"Look, Hermione, I didn't come here because I didn't trust you."

"Then why did you?" Hermione asked, bending down to pick up the apparating book that she had dropped when Draco grabbed her.

"I realized something. Before I left my mother at my mansion… before she told me about the horcruxes, she told me something else. She said to me that everything happens for a reason. I didn't understand then, but I do now."

"What are you talking about, Draco?" Hermione said placing the book under her arm again and crossing her arms across her chest.

Draco grabbed both of her hands in his and smiled at her. "I was looking through the bag of food back at camp and I found this." Draco reached into his pocket and pulled out his grandmother's old ring, then handed it to Hermione. She glanced down at it with a confused expression on her face. "Everything happens for a reason, Hermione. I was in that room the night Voldemort decided that he needed to get rid of you first so that he could assign me to the job. I was supposed to get assisgned to the job so I could rape you and you could get pregnant. You were meant to get pregnant so that Voldemort could force us to get closer and fall in love with each other without him even realizing it. We were meant to get closer so that we, along with Harry and Ron, could destroy horcruxes and eventually destroy Voldemort.

"My mother gave me something else along with the galleons." Draco reached into his other pocket and pulled out his father's old ring. "She was meant to give this to me and I was meant to find my grandmother's old ring so that we could spend the rest of our lives together." Hermione licked her lips as she watched Draco get down on one knee. "Hermione, I know now that everything happens for a reason. And I know that this happened so that I could spend the rest of my life with the woman I love more then anything and anyone… you." Draco smiled up at Hermione as she smiled back. "Hermione Granger, will you marry me?"

Hermione nodded and smiled as Draco placed the ring on her finger and stood up giving her a big kiss on the lips. "You're so cliché." She said as Draco gave her another kiss, causing him to laugh as their lips touched.

* * *

_Awe, how cute!!!!! Who saw that one coming? _

_Review!!!!_


	42. fourty two: favorite weasel

They didn't stop kissing until they heard the elevator ding and announce the floor they were on. They smiled into each other's eyes and locked hands as the door opened. Hermione poked her head out of the elevator and when she didn't see any potential danger, they made a run for it. The elevator happened to drop them off right at a spot that Draco knew perfectly well from his dad. He was able to lead them to the exit that put them right out in Diagon alley and they were able to leave the ministry easily… a little too easily.  
"Draco?" Hermione asked quietly as she gripped his hand tighter and walked closer to his side. "Doesn't it seem like we escaped a little too easily?" She asked as they dived down one of the side streets and out of view of the front of the ministry.

Draco didn't answer her. Instead he pulled her along quickly, diving down all the side streets and trying to locate the woods they were hiding in. "Do you remember where the tent was?" Draco asked, stopping at an intersection and taking a look around for anything that might help him remember which direction to head.

"By the second hand bookshop. You don't remember…" Hermione's voice died out and Draco looked at her, wondering why she stopped mid-sentence.

Hermione was staring through one of the windows of an old souvenir shop, eyes narrowed. "What are you looking at?" Draco asked, now looking in the same direction.

"Somebody was watching us." Hermione said nervously.

Draco bit his lip and gripped her hand tighter. "I'm sure it's paranoia taking over. Come on, let's go this way." He pulled down one of the main roads and after a couple minutes of searching, they thankfully reached the street with the second hand bookshop.

Draco led Hermione towards the bookshop, but she stopped suddenly and Draco watched her eyes search the street and the people around it, then turn to him. "We can't go back yet."

"What?" Draco asked walking closer to her. "Why not?"

"Because it's not paranoia Draco. Somebody is following us. I can sense it." Hermione said glancing around the street again.

"Hermione we need to get the horcrux back to Harry and Ron." Draco said quietly so only she could hear. "If they were going to attack us, they would have done it already."

Hermione nodded uneasily, and allowed Draco to pull her behind the shop and then into the woods. They saw the tent and then quickly approached it, Hermione turning around every couple minutes to check and make sure nobody was behind them.

When they reached the tent, Harry and Ron both jumped up and wrapped their arms around Hermione. "We're so happy you're okay." Harry said with a smile after he let go of Hermione.

"What happened?" Ron asked. "Did you get the horcrux?"

Hermione smiled slightly and reached into her pocket, entwining her fingers around the chain and then pulling it up out of her pocket, holding it out for everybody to see. Harry was the first to walk forward and held his hand out slowly. Hermione dropped it into his palm and he held his hand out for a couple minutes, then pulled it closer to take a look at it.

Everybody moved in slow motion, coming closer and closer towards Harry to take a look at the horcrux that lay out in his palm. "It feels… weird." Harry said quietly, almost in a whisper.

"I would image that holding part of somebody's soul would feel pretty strange." Hermione said just as quietly as Harry had talked.

"No… I mean… it has a pulse." Harry said, now placing the horcrux in his other palm. "Unless it's my pulse."

"Let me see." Ron said, holding out his hand. Harry placed it in the center of his hand. "No, I can feel it to." Ron said after a few seconds.

"Was it hard to get, Hermione?" Harry asked, taking the horcrux back from Ron.

"Not really. It would have been hard if I didn't have a second wand and if the deatheaters actually had some sense in them and could put two and two together."

Draco laughed slightly. "They're not the brightest bunch."

Hermione nodded and smiled in agreement. "So what happened?" Harry asked.

Hermione retold her tail, keeping everybody on the edge of their seats the entire time. "They're erasing the muggleborns memories."

"Why would they do that?" Ron asked.

"I've been thinking about it." Hermione said crossing her arms and biting her lip, turning her back on the group and looking out in the woods, deep in thought. "The only thing that I could really make sense of is that this is just a temporary solution."

"What do you mean?" Draco asked.

Hermione turned back around and face them, keeping her arms crossed. "The deatheaters are going to want to kill all the muggleborns, not just remove their memories and send them back into the muggle world. Right now, however, they don't have control of the ministry. They can't just go and kill muggleborns in the middle of the ministry. There are still people on our side walking around. Word would get out and mass panic and riots would start up. My guess is that Voldemort wouldn't want to create that panic… not yet at least.

"I think he's going to wait. Wait until he has control of the ministry before he does anything like killing muggleborns. Once he has control, he'll be able to cover it up."

"So you're saying that…"

"The deatheaters are removing their memories and giving them new ones, probably bad memories… and then their keeping their eyes on them. Once they have the ministry, they'll go back and find the muggleborns… and kill them."

"Bloody hell." Ron said, running his hand threw his hair.

"Good thing you saved some of them from that fait, Hermione." Harry said with a small smile.

"Yeah… but not all of them." Hermione said frowning.

"It's a war. There's going to be casualties." Draco pointed out.

"Yeah… but there shouldn't even be a war to begin with." Hermione pointed out. "All because one… mad man didn't like the fact that muggleborns were becoming witches and wizards, we're all now dealing with this."

"Speaking of the mad man… we need to figure out how to destroy this." Harry said holding out the horcrux. "Anybody know how?"

Everybody shook their heads, not having been able to find out any information about horcruxes other then what they were and that Voldemort created some.

"Let me see, Harry." Hermione said holding out her hand for Harry to hand it to her.

Right before Harry placed the locket in her palm, Ron stepped in front of Harry, pushing his hand out of the way lightly, and grabbed Hermione's hand, examining it. "Have you always worn a ring?" He asked, looking at her confused.

"Well… no." Hermione said, pulling her hand from Ron's grasp and glancing over at Draco as he walked over to her. Draco smiled at Hermione and entwined her hand in his, giving her a kiss on the forehead.

"What the bloody hell is going on here?" Ron asked, now glancing down at their locked fingers.

Hermione bit her lips together and turned to Draco, who understood that she wanted him to tell them. "I asked Hermione to marry me." Draco said, deciding it was best to just come out and tell them right off the bat without beating around the bushes.

"What!?!" Harry and Ron said at the same time.

"Is that why you ran off?" Harry asked.

"Yeah. I found the ring in our food bag and I took it as a sign that I needed to ask Hermione to marry me." Harry and Ron looked at Draco like he was crazy. "Everything happens for a reason." He snapped back at their looks.

"Don't tell me you said yes, Hermione." Ron said in a pleading voice.

"I did." Hermione said quietly, biting her lips.

"You did?!" Ron asked, anger pulsating through his veins. "Why the bloody hell would you agree to marry him? Him of all people?"

"What's that supposed to mean, Weasley?" Draco snapped.

"Oh… come off it! You know exactly what it means!" Ron snapped back at Draco, then turned to Hermione. "How can you want to marry him after what he did to you!?!" Ron said pointing at Draco.

"Ron-" Harry said, trying to stop Ron from saying what he would regret later.

"No, Harry! Don't pretend that you don't agree with me. We talked about this!"

"You two talked about this?" Hermione asked, shocked that her best friends would talk about her behind her back.

"It came up." Harry said quietly, ashamed.

"I can't believe you two!" Hermione yelled.

"You can't believe us!?" Ron snapped. "He raped you! He raped you and he got you pregnant! Now you're going to marry him! What the hell is wrong with you?"

"Hey!" Draco yelled, cutting off Hermione as she was about to say something. Draco stepped in front of Hermione and got right in front of Ron's face. "Don't talk to my fiancé like that."

Ron laughed. "Right, I'll stop. I'll stop for you and your fiancé."

"Yeah, you better." Draco said through clenched teeth.

Ron rolled his eyes and then stepped to the side so he could see Hermione again. "How can you trust him? After everything he did to you… how do you trust him?"

"He's changed, Ron. People change." Hermione said quietly.

"Not him! People like _him_ don't change." Ron said, pointing at Draco again.

"You're right, Ron." Hermione said, walking closer towards Draco and grabbing his hand. "Draco has always been like this. He's always been kind, loving, sweet, trustworthy,…everything a girl would want in a man. So you're right… people like him don't change. But people like you… they change." Hermione grabbed Draco's hand tighter and led him towards the tent where Rosie was laying fast asleep. Draco walked into the tent and Hermione turned back to Ron one last time. "You used to be one of my best friends, Ron. I thought I could count on you for anything… I even thought I was in love with you once. But now… _you've_ changed." Hermione gave a little laugh and shook her head. "I used to trust you and believe that you would always be there for me… make me happy and laugh all the time. But now…, all you do is let me down. Thanks for being there for me, Ron. Thanks for believing in me." Sarcasm rolled off Hermione's tongue as she closed the flaps of the tent and walked inside.

"You won't marry him!" Ron yelled from outside. "Me and Harry are all you have left, and you need two witnesses to get married! You need me and Harry's help… and you won't get it!"

Hermione closed her eyes and shook her head, tears rolling down her cheeks. She felt two hands wrap around her upper arm and she looked into Draco's silver eyes. "Don't worry about him. We'll find a way. We don't need them." Draco said quietly as Hermione rested her head on Draco's chest and wrapped her arms around him.

"He's right, Draco." Hermione said closing her eyes as Draco wrapped his arms around her and gave her a kiss on the top of her head.

"What do you mean he's right?" Draco asked in a whisper.

"I love you."

"I love you too, but… what did you mean he's right?"

"I can't marry you without Harry and Ron being at my side." Hermione said releasing the hug from Draco and turning her back on him, running her hand through her hair and pushing it behind her ears.

"Hermione… we'll find another-"

"It's not that." Hermione snapped, cutting him off and turning back around to face him. "Harry and Ron are my best friends… my brothers. If I'm going to get married to somebody… I want them to be happy for me and trust the person I'm marrying." Hermione looked up into Draco's eyes as he grabbed both of her hands in his. "I love you, Draco. But I can't marry you until I know that Ron and Harry trust you and are okay with us getting married."

"Why? Hermione… that's dumb. Forget those two bozos! We'll go off and get-"

"They're not bozos, Draco!" Hermione said loudly, making Rosie stir. "They're my best friends and I need them to be with me on this." Hermione stated as Rosie started to cry over in her bassinet. "I'm sorry."

Draco watched as Hermione walked over towards their daughter and picked her up, faking a smile and rocking her back and forth. Frustrated, Draco exhaled a deep breath, and exited the tent… ready to have a long talk with his favorite weasel.

* * *

_So so so so so sorry for that long delay again in updating! I have an excuse! I spent the weekend camping and when i got home... the weather was so nice! It's been like summer here in Jersey people... let me tell you what. But since you guys are amazing and soooooo patient... i gave you a pretty long chapter. I hope you liked it! More drama!_

_Oh... and one more thing! This weekend i'm going to bamboozle (huge concert with amazing bands just in case you have no clue what that is), so i may not be updating till monday or tuesday. But... the hotel i'm staying at has free internet! yay! So if im not exhausted from the day... i'll be updating. No promises though! _

_REVIEW!_


	43. fourty three: little love in the world

_Last Chapter:_

_Draco watched as Hermione walked over towards their daughter and picked her up, faking a smile and rocking her back and forth. Frustrated, Draco exhaled a deep breath, and exited the tent… ready to have a long talk with his favorite weasel. _

* * *

"You have got to be the biggest git I have ever seen, Weasley." Draco said walking towards Harry and Ron with his hands clenched into fist at his side.

"Oh, yeah?" Ron asked turning to face Draco with his arms crossed against his chest. "Why's that?"

"You can't stand the fact that I'm in love with Hermione." Draco said, getting in Ron's face.

"Maybe I can't stand the fact that Hermione is falling in love with her rapist." Ron said smirking at Draco.

"Has."

"What?"

"_Has_ fallen in love with her rapist." Ron's smirk faded as one formed on Draco's.

Before Draco knew what was happening, Ron's fist came in contact with his face, knocking him sideways and landing on the ground. "You stupid son of a bitch!" Ron screamed, charging at Draco again, but was stopped as Harry grabbed him and pulled him back.

"Ron, stop!" Harry yelled, keeping Ron away from Draco as he stood up from the ground. "You have stop acting like this."

"And you need to pick a bloody side, Harry!" Ron yelled, still trying to get away from Harry's grip. "We've talked about this and you agreed with me. Malfoy raped Hermione! I can't just stand here and pretend like this is perfectly normal! People don't fall in love with their rapist! It's… wrong!"

Harry opened his mouth to say something but was cut off by Draco. "Did you ever think that maybe Hermione doesn't think of me as her rapist?"

"Why the hell would she do that? That's what you are… a rapist."

"People change, Weasley. I think you need to hear the whole story before you go and make assumptions about people that aren't true." Draco approached Harry and Ron, and Harry released Ron, sensing that the brawl between them was over. "I never chose the life I was given. It was given to me at birth. My parents decided to get involved with Voldemort… not me. The Malfoy's were at the top of the list of Voldemorts favorites. When my father let him down, we were lowered to the bottom of his list, and we needed to find a way up. You don't want to be at the bottom of Voldemort's list.

"So when Voldemort needed an idea to bring down Potter, my father wanted to come up with one fast, and he did. He told Voldemort to use me to get to Hermione, since she was the ones with the brains. I was _forced_ to rape Hermione, I never wanted to. I couldn't say no. Our family would just be lowered even more. I couldn't put my family in danger, so I had no choice. I'm not denying what I did or saying that it was right, I'm just saying that… I regret it." Draco lowered his head slightly and licked his lips. "But in a way I don't regret it."

Harry and Ron exchanged glances, and then turned back to Draco. "You don't?" Harry asked, surprised.

Draco looked at them and smiled slightly. "If I never raped Hermione then she never would have became pregnant. If she didn't become pregnant then I wouldn't have fallen in love with her and I wouldn't have gotten a daughter." Draco's eyes brightened at hearing himself talk about his daughter and fiancé in this way, and it didn't pass Harry's eyes.

"You can't get an heir from a female. The rest of the Malfoy's were all about heirs, why aren't you?" Ron snapped in a pissed off tone.

"I love my daughter Weasley. And in case you didn't notice… I'm pretty different from the rest of my family." Draco put his hands in his pockets, looking down at the ground. "She won't marry me unless she knows that you guys are going to be okay with it." He said still looking at the ground. "I'm asking… no, …begging you to be okay with this." Draco glanced back up at the two men before him, but he was looking deep into Harry's eyes, hoping that he would be the one to forgive and forget. "Please…, I love her so much."

"No… no bloody-"

"Okay." Harry said cutting off Ron and exhaling a deep breath.

'What!?"

Draco's face lit up at Harry's approval and he turned to go back into the tent, but stopped when he heard Harry speak. "I'm warning you though, Malfoy. If you hurt Hermione, mentally or physically… you'll be my next target… not Voldemort."

Draco noticed the seriousness in Harrys voice and approached him slowly, holding out his hand. "You have my promise." Draco stated as Harry grabbed his hand. "As much as Hermione is a sister to you is as much as a brother I'm going to be to you." They released grips and Draco practically ran back into the tent to tell Hermione the news.

"Are you mental?" Ron snapped at Harry. "How can you agree with me one second and then change your mind the next?"

"I never agreed with you, Ron." Harry said still staring at the tent flap that Draco had run through only seconds before. "I agreed with you that I thought it was strange for somebody to fall in love with their rapist… especially Hermione, but I never agreed with you towards their engagement."

"I can't believe you're supporting them." Ron said sitting down on a tree stump and putting his head in his hands.

"He loves her, Ron." Harry glanced over towards Ron. "I know he does. Didn't you see the look in his eyes when he was talking about her and Rosie just now? I know that feeling…" Harry spoke slowly and softly, his mind racing with thoughts of Ginny.

"I don't trust him Harry. You've only been in the wizarding world for what… six years, and I've been here for 16. I know about his family and the things that the Malfoy's have done. They aren't exactly angels."

"Sirius is related to the Malfoy's, remember? Draco's mom is Sirius's cousin… and Sirius is about as much of a deatheater as you and me."

"What's your point?"

"My point is that you can't judge a book by its cover." Harry snapped at Ron who was starting to annoy him. "Just because Draco is a Malfoy doesn't automatically make him a bad person."

"Harry, please." Ron said faking a laugh. "Did you forget about all the things that he did to us while we were at school?"

"No." Harry glanced back towards the tent opening. "But if Hermione saw the good in him… then I think we can to. Let's just give him some time to prove himself to us, Ron. Besides… they love each other, and getting married will only make their love stronger. During these dark times…, I think we need a little love in the world."

* * *

_Sorry for the long wait again guys! Like i said... i had to go to bamboozle this weekend (anybody else go?) and it was amazing and exhausting at the same time. Between the sore feet, sun poisining, bruises, dancing, crowd surfing, moshing, and autographs... i didnt have much time to write. So when i got home i sat down with my laptop and typed you guys up a chapter. Sorry its so short, but i didnt want to keep you guys waiting. I should have another one up either tomorrow or the next couple of days._

_Remember to review please!_


	44. fourty four: here we come

_Last Chapter: "No." Harry glanced back towards the tent opening. "But if Hermione saw the good in him… then I think we can to. Let's just give him some time to prove himself to us, Ron. Besides… they love each other, and getting married will only make their love stronger. During these dark times…, I think we need a little love in the world."_

* * *

Draco threw back the flaps of the tent opening and his smile grew when he saw Hermione standing over the bassinet, smiling down at Rose and stroking her head softly. She looked up when she sensed Draco in the room and let out a little laugh at the face he was making. "What are you so happy about?" Draco ran towards Hermione and wrapped his arms around her. He lifted her off the ground and spun her around in circles. Hermione let out a little squeal and held onto Draco tightly, lifter her legs up so they wouldn't drag on the ground. "What are you doing?" She asked between squeals. Draco put her back down and gave her a long, hard, passionate kiss. "Are you ill?" Hermione asked, fixing her hair.

Draco let out a little laugh at he helped her fix her hair in the back. He leaned in towards her ear while he was fixing her hair, and when his lips were right next to her ear, he whispered. "They said yes."

When Draco pulled back, he looked at Hermione to see the confused look he figured she would have, plastered on her face. "What?"

"I went and talked to Harry and Weasley. They changed their mind." Draco gave her another kiss.

"They did?" Hermione asked when they released the kiss. "Even Ron?"

"Well…"

"Draco."

"It's okay. Harry said yes. Isn't Weasley like Harry's shadow?" Draco asked grabbing both her hands in his.

"Well… yeah. I mean… that's a mean thing to say, but yeah. Harry and Ron are best friends… equals. Ron isn't lower then Harry and Harry's not lower then Ron."

"Okay, I'm sorry. I didn't mean it like that."

"Then what did you mean, Draco?"

"I mean that if Harry's okay with it… Weasley eventually will to. Harry will talk to him and everything will be okay."

"But Ron still doesn't trust you?"

"He will, Hermione… He will." Draco gave her a kiss on the forehead and ran his thumb down her cheek. "I don't want to talk about Weasley and Harry. Let's talk about us. We can get married now." Hermione smiled slightly and lowered her head to the ground. Draco lifted up her chin. "What's the matter?"

"It's not that I don't want to get married to you, it's just doesn't feel right."

"What doesn't?"

"Harry trusts you but Ron doesn't. He won't be happy for me… he never will. I want him to be happy for me, Draco."

"Hermione, listen to me." Draco said seriously. "If Ron is as great a friend as you say he is then he should be happy that you found somebody who loves you as much in the way that I love you. He should trust your decision and support you and your happiness. If he doesn't… then maybe Weasley isn't as great a friend as you think he is."

"Hermione looked at Draco shocked, but knew that he was telling her the truth. "I know." She said softly. "I just wish he would trust you _now_. Hermione rested her head on Draco's chest and wrapped her arms around him in a hug. Draco placed a hand on her back and one on the back of her head, running his fingers through her hair. "Everything would be so much easier if he did." Hermione said as Draco kissed the top of her head.

"I'll gain it. I gained Harry's… I think, why not Weasleys." Draco said resting his chin lightly on her head and rocking back and forth.

"Maybe you could start by calling him Ron." Draco smiled at Hermione's comment. "We should go outside." Hermione said releasing her arms from around Draco. "We need to see what our next move is."

Draco agreed and let go of Hermione, but grabbed her hand and entwined their fingers as they walked out of the then. They spotted Harry and Ron sitting by the fire and walked over and joined them. They sat together, fingers still locked together.

Harry greeted them with a nod, then turned his attention back to the locket he held tightly in his hands. Ron just glared at Hermione and Draco's entwined hands. "So…" Hermione sighed, trying to break the silence. "Where to now?"

"I think we should try and destroy the locked" Draco said pointed towards the horcrux.

"How?" Ron asked. "Me and Harry tried everything. I won't break."

"I don't think you can break something like that by smashing it into a rock." Draco said matter-of-factly.

"How then?" Harry asked, looking up.

"Draco shrugged and everybody became silent in thought. "let's go get help then." Ron said.

"Where?" Hermione asked.

"Grimmauld Place?"

"Oh, Ron… You're crazy."

"Why?"

"That placed belonged to Sirius before he died."

"So? It was left to Harry, wasn't it?"

"Yeah, but the order deserted it. It's dangerous, Ron. They thought Bellatrix might be able to find it."

"Draco let out a small snort. "Sorry." He said when everybody looked at him. "My aunt may be a great witch when it comes to magic and power, but she lacks in common sense. She wouldn't even think about _that_."

"See." Ron said proudly. "If we can get to Grimmauld Place then we might be able to contact the order and they can help us with the horcrux."

"I don't know Ron…"

"Ron's right." Harry said. "We'll go to Grimmauld Place."

"Is it close?" Draco asked.

"Not really. It's in London, but a muggle neighborhood. A couple days of walking." Harry stated.

Ron groaned as Draco nodded. Hermione suddenly smacked herself in the forehead and stood up, walking back to the tent, muttering something about being forgetful and stupid. She came back a couple of seconds later carrying a big book. "I can't believe I forgot. I snatched this from the ministry while I was being chased by a deatheater." She held the book up and she sat next to Draco.

"Apparation?" Harry asked with a smile.

Hermione nodded. "You're bloody brilliant Hermione." Ron said staring at the book.

"Hermione blushed and smiled. "Thank you. This is the same book they used to teach us in school, I think. I figured it would come in handy and apparently I was right."

"Like always." Draco said playfully, getting a light hit on the arm and a smile from Hermione. "So… we learn to apparate and then we go to Grimmauld place?"

"Exactly."

Draco nodded and Ron rubbed his hands together in anticipation. "Grimmauld place… here we come!"

* * *

_hey guys! i hope you liked this chapter... even though it was short. i actually wasn't even planning on writing a chapter today, but i had to take my brother to his violin lesson so i wrote this durring that. like i said... i hope you liked it. the only way i'll know however is if you review! so come on... dont be shy!_


	45. fourty five: bouncing baby brat and 3 Ds

_Last Chapter: "Like always." Draco said playfully, getting a light hit on the arm and a smile from Hermione. "So… we learn to apparate and then we go to Grimmauld place?"_

_"Exactly."_

_Draco nodded and Ron rubbed his hands together in anticipation. "Grimmauld place… here we come!"_

* * *

There was a knock on the library door and Voldemort's cold, snakelike voice rang throughout the room. "Enter." The deatheater opened the door slowly and approached Voldemort, who was sitting in his thrown like chair with several of his closest deatheaters surrounding him. The deatheater who knocked, kneeled down in a bow once he reached Voldemort. "You better have a good reason for coming here, Travers." Voldemort said through his teeth.

"My Lord," Travers said, still kneeling but now looking up at Voldemort. "Something has happened at the ministry." Voldemort glared at Travers, gripping the arms of the chair tighter. "But… there is good news My Lord."

"You better hurry up and explain Travers before I lose my patience."

"Potter's mudblood came to the ministry on the day of the examinations and a-attacked Umbridge, Gibbon, and Jugson. M-Most of the mudbloods escaped with her as well, My Lord."

"WHAT!" Voldemort rose from his chair and pointed his wand at Travers, raising him into the air and at eye level with him. "You mean to tell me that not only did our plan fail to wipe out some of the mudbloods, revealing our plan in the meantime, but we had the Granger girl in our grasps… AND WE COULDN'T EVEN CAPTURE HER?!" Voldemort screamed as rage over took him.

"Please… My Lord," Travers begged, now finding himself being chocked by an invisible force. "We didn't capture her… but we-we know of her where abouts and we know where she is heading." Voldemort released Travers and he fell to the ground, landing on his side.

"Where?" Voldemort asked through his teeth.

"They were talking about seeking out the order and wanted to go to their headquarters, My Lord. They said it was in muggle London. A placed called Grimmauld Place."

"Where are they now?"

"Woods behind Diagon Alley. They have an apparation book that they stole from the Ministry as well, My Lord. They are planning on learning to apparate and then making their way to the headquarters that way."

"Did you happen to hear who was at the headquarters?"

"They said it was abandoned. We can only guess they are going there for shelter and protection."

"Fools." Voldemort hissed under his breath. "Who is watching them now?"

"Avery, My Lord."

"Good, Travers. Perhaps you haven't failed me yet. Here is the plan," Voldemort turned and faced all the other deatheaters in the room, and Travers took this opportunity to return to his feet. "The Order of the Phoenix has deserted their headquarters. There will be nobody there except Potter, the mudblood, the blood traitors Weasley and Malfoy, and there little bouncing baby brat." Voldemort spit the last part out like it was poison. He turned back and faced Travers. "Go back to Avery. Watch Potter and his little friends closely, and follow them to this Grimmauld Place. When the timing is right, enter the house and take the child. If anybody or anything is to get in your way, except for Potter,… kill them."

--------------------

All four of them sat by the fire that night, protective charms circling them in what they all imagined to be a big bubble. Harry sat on a log, staring and examining the horcrux, with Ron on his right who was poking the fire with a long stick. Hermione sat on the ground with her legs crossed over one another, reading the apparation book in the fire light while Draco sat a couple feet behind her on a tree stump, holding Rosie in his arms and making funny faces at her, causing her to laugh.

Harry put the locket in his pocket and turned his attention to Ron, who was now jabbing the fire with his stick and knocking some of the small sticks loose. "You're going to end up distinguishing the fire." Harry pointed out.

"Well what the bloody hell else am I supposed to do?" Ron said throwing down the stick and crossing his arms over his chest, gaining a grin from Draco at how childish he was acting.

"You could wait patiently until Hermione is done reading the book." Harry said with a smirk, holding back a laugh at Ron's face.

"It's not my fault she's taking so bloody long." Ron said under his breath.

"I heard that." Hermione snapped, looking up at Ron. "And the reason I'm taking so long is because I want to get this right. Apparation is very dangerous magic, _Ronald_. There's a reason they make you wait until your seventeen to take your test. Many things can happen when you apparate, and I'm not exactly sure how to fix them if they were to happen."

"What kind of things?" Harry asked.

"It's called splinching. If you apparate to one place… but you're not concentrating on it completely, then part of your body can apparate while the other part stays behind."

"Gross." Draco said, gaining a smile from Hermione.

"Yes, it is. You can become stuck and you won't be able to move on either end. This is a lot more dangerous and complex then I thought. Listen:_ There are three important things to remember when apparating, called the three Ds, which stand for destination, determination, and deliberation. Step one: fix your mind firmly upon the desired __**destination**__. Step two: focus your __**determination**__ to occupy the visualized space. Let your yearning to enter it flood from your mind to every particle of your body. Step three: turn on the spot, feeling your way into nothingness, moving with __**deliberation**__._ I'm starting to think that this isn't such a good idea."

"You think we should wait?" Ron asked.

"Yes. I'm afraid to admit it, but there's something's a book can't teach you. We need a proper teacher, somebody who has been apparating for years."

"So now what? We walk?" Draco asked.

Everybody turned their attention to Harry, deciding that he should be the one to make all the decisions. He looked at them and nodded. "Hermione's right. As much as I would love to learn to apparate, this isn't the right place or time." Harry stood up suddenly and stretched. "We should just stay here for the night and then move on in the morning. We can all take shifts tonight with watch. I'll go first."

Everybody nodded and then started to head inside towards the tent. Draco handed Rosie over towards Hermione and then gave her a quick kiss. "I'm going to go for a walk, try and find some wild mushrooms or something."

"Are you sure? Won't that be dangerous?" Hermione said bouncing Rosie up and down slightly in her arms to stop her from crying.

Draco let out a little laugh. "I'm just going to collect some food not battle death eaters."

"Well… okay." Hermione said as Draco gave her one last kiss then turned and walked out into the woods.

"Where's he going?" Harry asked as Hermione walked past him to enter into the tent. "

"He wanted to collect some more food."

"More food? We have a whole bag full of food." Harry said turning towards Hermione and looking at her with a confused expression on his face.

"That's what he told me, Harry." Hermione said as she watched Harry bite his lip and watch Draco walk away into the darkness, wonder and confusion written all over his face. "Don't worry Harry." Hermione said reassuring him and patting him on the shoulder. "I'm sure he just wants some alone time to clear his head or something."

"You trust him, right Hermione?" Harry asked right before Hermione walked inside the tent.

Hermione turned back to Harry and smiled. "With all my heart." Harry smiled back at Hermione until she walked inside the tent, then his attention was back on Draco and the real reason he was traveling through the woods at night alone, and heading back towards the muggle village they had passed on their way to Diagon Alley.

* * *

_Once again... another short chapter. Sorry! But still, i have given you guys like one chapter a night for the past three nights... so at least you're not waiting a week for the chapter and then it turns out to be super short. Anyway.. hope you liked it! _

_Anybody have any ideas as to what Draco is about to do? I think you'll be surprised when you finally see what it is hes up to : )_

_Oh, one more thing before i leave you until tomorrow (most likely), i was on my way home from bamboozle this weekend... and a idea struck me! i was going to make it into another story of mine... but then i decided that it would make an AMAZING sequel to this story! So now when i finish with this story... it really won't be finished! I have the summary and everything figured out and if its killing you to know what it is, just send me a personal message or a review and i will gladly let you know what it's going to be about. Not to mention that your thoughts on it would be great too! _

_until next time!_

....ps review!


	46. fourty six: muggle style

_Last Chapter: "__You trust him, right Hermione?" Harry asked right before Hermione walked inside the tent. _

_Hermione turned back to Harry and smiled. "With all my heart." Harry smiled back at Hermione until she walked inside the tent, then his attention was back on Draco and the real reason he was traveling through the woods at night alone, and heading back towards the muggle village they had passed on their way to Diagon Alley._

Hermione woke up the next morning to the sounds of birds chirping outside the tent. She kept her eyes closed and just listened as they sang their songs. She moved her hand up to rub her eyes before the morning sunlight pierced them, but felt her hand run into something wrapped around her stomach. She opened her eyes and smiled when she saw Draco's arm wrapped around her tightly and pulling her back against his chest. She let out a little laugh inside her throat and managed to turn so she was facing him. "Draco." Hermione said in a whisper, kissing him on the bridge of his nose.

He let out a moan and licked his lips, squeezing Hermione closer to him with his hand that now lay on the center of her back. "Draco." Hermione said again, not wanting to wake him. "Draco, you have to wake up."

"I don't wanna go to class." Draco whined into his pillow, exhaling and falling back asleep.

Hermione shook her head and laughed. She gave him one more kiss and then pried herself from his grip, stood up, and walked over to the bassinet where Rosie lay still fast asleep. She heard Draco stir in the bed and watched as he flipped over onto his other side and pulled the blankets closer to him, the warmth that was Hermione no longer there. Hermione decided to let her daughter sleep, especially since they would be moving non-stop today and she was going to need all the rest she could get.

Hermione walked over towards the flap of the tent and walked outside, smiling at Harry and Ron who sat around the extinguished fire. "Good morning." She said taking a seat on one of the logs they had found and placed around the fire.

"Morning." Harry and Ron both mumbled, still not fully awake yet.

"Where's Malfoy?" Ron asked.

"Sleeping. I tried to wake him but he started talking about not wanting to go to class, so I just left him." Hermione said reaching into the bag of food and finding something suitable to eat for breakfast.

"Yeah, well I don't think he got much sleep last night." Harry said looking at the tent.

"What do you mean?" Hermione asked,

"Well, after he left last night, he didn't come back for a while. I was about to go and wake you up Hermione so you could take your shift when he finally returned."

"What time was that?" Ron asked.

"What was it…?" Harry asked himself, looking up at the trees and biting his lip. "Around two I wanna say."

"Two in the morning?!" Hermione asked surprised.

"Yeah. And when he came back he told me to go to sleep and he would take the next shift." Harry confirmed.

"And he was the one who woke me up at around 6 to take my shift." Ron said looking at his friends confused. "That means he watched for four hours."

"I was never woken up, so he took my shift then." Hermione said now staring at the tent as well.

"It doesn't take that long to pick mushrooms… does it?" Harry asked.

"It… shouldn't." Hermione said quietly, the reels in her head turning as to what Draco was doing in the woods all night long.

"I told you." Ron snapped. "He's up to something and we need to find out before it's too late."

At that moment, the flaps of the tent opened and Draco came walking out. He let out a yawn and then rubbed his eyes to get used to the sunlight. He took a seat next to Hermione and gave her a kiss on the cheek. When he turned to the fire, it was then he noticed that everybody was staring at him. "What?" He asked, seriously confused.

"Where did you go last night, Malfoy?" Ron asked, crossing his arms over his chest.

Draco laughed and smiled, only for it to fade when he saw the serious looks he was getting from the group. "I went looking for food. I told you all that before I left."

"You came back empty handed." Harry pointed out. "And don't you think two hours is quite a long time to go looking for food, especially considering it was what… midnight?"

"So I didn't find anything, so what?" Draco said throwing his arms in the air and standing up, turning to walk back into the tent before they could pester him more.

"Hold it Malfoy!" Ron yelled. Draco turned around and saw Harry and Ron both on their feet, looking ready to pounce on him at any second. Hermione was still seated, but turned towards him, shaking her head slightly with a confused look on her face, awaiting an explanation.

"What!?" Draco snapped, not liking the pressure.

"Where the bloody hell did you go last night?" Ron asked, now approaching Draco.

Draco let out a little laugh. "Calm down Weasley."

"See!" Ron yelled. "I told you guys not to trust him! He's up to something, like I've been saying from the beginning!"

"I'm not up to anything and you can trust me! I just went for a walk, okay?" Draco yelled.

"For two hours?" Harry asked.

"Yes. I needed to clear my head."

"About what?" Harry said, now walking and standing next to Ron, wanting to get to the truth.

"I…well… you see-"

"Look at him! He's lying to our faces and he's been lying from the beginning!" Ron said now walking closer and pointing his finger at Draco.

"I haven't lied about anything!"

"I bet he's still on Voldemort's side!"

"Oh, yeah, because I would _love_ help the guy who killed my father and turned my daughter into a horcrux!" Draco yelled sarcastically.

"Then where did you go?" Harry asked calmly, but loosing the calmness quickly.

"I… I can't tell you." Draco said licking his lips.

"Guilty." Ron murmured under his breath.

"I'm not guilty!" Draco snapped, taking a step closer to Ron.

"Then where did you go!?" Harry asked, becoming impatient.

Draco looked around at Hermione for help, but saw the sadness and confusion in her eyes. "Just tell us where you went, Draco." She said calmly, knowing that yelling and getting angry with him wasn't going to do anything.

Draco exhaled a deep breath and scratched the top of his head in aggravation and defeat. "I went to the muggle village." He said quietly.

"What?" They all asked at once.

"Why'd you go to the muggle village?" Harry asked.

"Meeting some of your deatheater friends there?" Ron asked with a smirk, knowing he was annoying Draco even if he was right or not about what he was doing.

"I'm not a deatheater!" Draco snapped, glaring at Ron.

"Then why did you go to the village?" Hermione asked.

"I wanted it to be a surprise." Draco said quietly, looking at Hermione. "The stupid Weasel over here just had to ruin it." Draco pointed at Ron who glared at his finger. "I went to the village because I wanted to find a church."

"A church?" Harry asked, now truly confused.

"Yeah." Draco said smiling at Hermione and then walking over and taking a seat next to her, wrapping his hand in both of hers. "I went to the village and found a church. I told the priest that we wanted to get married but we didn't have any money. He told me that you can't put a price on love and that he would do it as long as I promised him something."

"What?" Hermione asked with a smile.

"That I would always love you." Draco said smiling with embarrassment at the fact that Harry and Ron were watching them. "I told him that wouldn't be a problem."

Hermione's smile grew and she leaped forward, wrapping her arms around Draco in a tight hug. When she released the hug, she turned back to Draco with a question that suddenly popped into her head. "You're okay with marrying me… muggle style?

"Hermione… I would marry you cave man style." Draco said with a laugh, yet his voice was still full of seriousness. "As long as I can call you Mrs. Malfoy, I'll be satisfied."

Hermione launched herself at Draco again, only this time she connected her lips with his, holding onto the side of his face with both her hands as Draco placed his hands on her hips. They didn't stop kissing until they heard something clear their throat. They looked up and suddenly turned red in the face, having completely forgotten that Harry and Ron were still standing there. Ron looked furious but Harry had a small smile plastered on his face, full with understanding.

"Do you think maybe you can wait till we're out of the room next time?" Ron asked, looking like he was about to barf.

"Sorry." Hermione said quietly to her friends, then turned back to Draco. "Did you give the priest a time or anything?"

"No. I told him in a couple days. I figured we should probably get to this Grimmauld Place and figure everything out first."

"I agree." Harry said, clapping his hands together. "What do you say we pack up and then head out?"

"Nobody pack up the barf bag. I might need it for later." Ron said still looking at Hermione and Draco holding hands.

"Oh, shut it Weasley." Draco said standing up and giving Hermione another kiss before walking over and helping Harry straighten up. Hermione stood up and walked into the tent to grab Rosie. Once she had her nice and wrapped up in the sling, she left the tent and with a wave of her wand, it folded itself and fell right back into the bag. "How long of a walk do you think it'll be?"

"No clue." Harry answered once they were all packed up and ready to leave. "But bring your walking shoes."

* * *

_hello again! another day... another chapter! __so, by a raise of hands... how many people thought Draco was still involved with Voldy? __and by a raise of hands... how many people saw what happened comming? i bet not many of you did, but if you did... good job!_

_SO please remember to review. the reason ive been updating so often if becuase i have been getting a lot of reviews, and i like reviews! if you like a new chapter everyday, then review! its like one of those you scratch my back and i'll scratch yours kinda things : ]_

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	47. fourty seven: less then 24 hours

_Last Chapter: "Oh, shut it Weasley." Draco said standing up and giving Hermione another kiss before walking over and helping Harry straighten up. Hermione stood up and walked into the tent to grab Rosie. Once she had her nice and wrapped up in the sling, she left the tent and with a wave of her wand, it folded itself and fell right back into the bag. "How long of a walk do you think it'll be?"_

_"No clue." Harry answered once they were all packed up and ready to leave. "But bring your walking shoes."_

* * *

The walk to Grimmauld Place was brutal. As they started making their way out of the woods, rain clouds came overhead of them and before they could try and find cover, it started to pour. They were all soaked within seconds, except for Rosie who had a spell put on her by Hermione to keep her dry. Once they finally made it out of the woods, they had to figure out where they were and in which direction they needed to go to make it to London.

They arrived at headquarters at around eleven that night, Ron loving the fact that Harry was incorrect with his guessing on how long it would take to arrive. And thankfully, they had all been to headquarters before, minus Draco and Rosie, so they were able to get inside easily. They walked through the door with their wands drawn, ready in case anybody unfriendly was waiting for them. They found the house to be deserted except for painting of Sirius's mom and Kreature, the house else.

Ron made his way towards the kitchen first, hoping to get a good meal in his stomach, Harry following him shortly after. Hermione made her way to follow Harry, but froze when she noticed that Draco was standing with his back to the front door, the food bag slung over his shoulder, and staring around at the house. "Draco?" She asked quietly, approaching him. "Are you okay?"

He looked at her and smiled slightly. "Yeah. This place is just… creepy. I just find it hard to believe I'm related to these people."

"Oh yeah, I forgot. How are you related again?"

Draco laughed. "You got me. We didn't talk much about my mother's side of the family, except for my Aunt Bellatrix. I think Potter's godfather, Sirius Black, was my mother's cousin." Draco bit his lip and looked around the room. "I don't know though. Pureblood families manly stuck with the males side of the family."

"Do you want to go see the family tree? I think there's one in one of the bedrooms upstairs."

"Sure." Draco said with a smile, now glancing up the stairs.

Hermione poked her head down the stairway that led to the kitchen and yelled to let Harry and Ron know they were going upstairs. She smiled at Draco when she poked her head back out and started walking towards the stairs, Draco following. They walked up the stairs together, Hermione leading Draco by a couple steps and carrying a sleeping Rosie in her amrs. When they reached the room, she opened the door and stepped in, pointing towards the wall that was covered by the black family tree.

Draco walked past Hermione and glanced up at the family tree. He placed the food bag down on the ground, then moved towards the center of the wall where he had a better view. Hermione walked over to him and gave him a kiss on the cheek. "I'm going to feed Rosie and find her a place to sleep, okay?"

Draco only nodded, keeping his attention on the wall. Hermione walked out of the room and went down the hall into the same room that she had slept when they stayed at Grimmauld Place before. She quickly transformed a chair that sat under a desk into a bassinet and sat down on the bed in the room and fed Rosie quickly. She then gave her daughter a kiss on the forehead and laid her down, where she fell asleep instantly.

Hermione walked inside the room that Draco was in and froze at the door frame. Draco was biting both of his lips together and running had his finger tips on one of the faces on the tree. She approached him slowly and noticed instantly that he was crying. She looked at him confused, but finally understood when she saw the face he was touching. Draco ran his fingers over the silver letters that formed together a name: Lucius Malfoy. "Draco?" Hermione asked softly.

He dropped his hand and lowered his eyes to the ground. "He was so sure." Draco said as silent tears ran down his cheeks. Hermione quickly grabbed his hand and gave it a tight squeeze. He turned his head and looked at her. "He was so sure he was doing the right thing." Draco now had tears pouring down his cheeks and his voice showed that he was crying.

Hermione shook her head slightly and wrapped both of her arms around Draco in a comforting way. "It's okay, Draco." She said rubbing his back. He wrapped his arms around her and rested his face on her shoulder, soaking her shirt in tears as he finally let all the grief and sadness he was holding in towards his father death come out. Hermione wanted to say something, but didn't know what to say in this situation. She didn't know how Draco felt about his father or what was running through his head at the moment, so she kept silent and kept rubbing his back.

"My father made the decision early on." Draco said removing his head from Hermione's shoulder and glancing back at the picture of his father. "He wanted to protect his family, so he chose the side he thought would be better in the end. But once you're involved… you can't get out. He made the dumbest decision ever. Why would you want to get involved with Voldemort? Why would anybody!?" Draco pulled himself away from Hermione, becoming frustrated.

"Draco… stop." Hermione said calmly, reaching for his hand, but he pulled it away.

"It's because of him that we're in this situation right now! If he never made that stupid decision to join Voldemort's side, then my family… the Malfoy's, would never have gotten the reputation they have now. I wouldn't have been forced to rape you, you wouldn't be pregnant, my mother wouldn't be locked up in a cell in our own home, we wouldn't be on the run, and…" Draco stopped, closing his eyes as more tears fell down his cheeks. "He… he wouldn't… he wouldn't be-" Draco ran his hands through his hair as he let out a cry of loss and sadness.

Hermione ran at him as he fell to his knees. She lowered herself to him and grabbed his hands that were now plastered to his face, covering his blood shot red eyes. "Draco, listen to me." Hermione said softly as Draco slowly looked at her. "If your father never joined Voldemort's side, then yes, none of those things would have happened. But think of all the things that also wouldn't have happened if you're father never joined Voldemort's side. Everything would be different now. We never would of met in the way we did, we never would of fallen in love in the way we did, we never would be getting married, and…" Hermione stood up, pulling Draco up with her. "we wouldn't have a daughter. We wouldn't have Rose." Draco looked at Hermione and she gave her a comforting smile. "You should be proud of the things that your father did… because he did them for you."

Draco closed his eyes as tears fell from them. Hermione wrapped her arms around Draco again and he did the same. They stayed like this for a few minutes until Draco finally spoke. "You're right." He whispered. "I'm sorry."

"Don't apologize." Hermione said as Draco released the hug but still held onto Hermione's hand tightly. "You have been holding that in for a while."

Draco nodded and Hermione rested her head on his chest. Draco placed his hands on her back and rested his cheek on her head. "I am sorry you had to see me like that, though."

Hermione licked her lips, deciding that a subject change would be a good idea to get the thought of Lucius out of Draco's mind. "Let's get married." She said quietly, marriage the only thing she was able to come up with.

Draco placed his hands on her waist and pushed her away gently. They stayed in each other grasps, but Draco looked at Hermione confused. "We are getting married." He reminded her.

"No." Hermione said smiling and shaking her head. "I mean as soon as possible. Let's get married tomorrow."

Draco smiled at her. "Seriously? I thought you didn't want to rush things."

"I want to be Mrs. Hermione Malfoy… right now. I want to be able to call you my husband and-." She stopped talking as Draco crashed his lips onto hers. They bended and moaned into each other until they couldn't breathe any longer and were forced to part.

They smiled at each other and placed their foreheads together as they caught their breath. "Let's go tell Potter and Weasley." Draco said quietly.

A sudden yell came from a couple floors down and Hermione and Draco parted, staring at the door. They looked at each other one more time before racing down the stairs. They made their way towards where they guessed the yell came from and ended up in the kitchen. Harry and Ron were wrestling what looked like to be a hairless dog in a pillowcase, and were having a hard time at that. Hermione quickly pulled out her wand and aimed it at the creature at Draco ran to pull Harry and Ron off. "Immobulus!" She yelled when she had a clear shot.

Harry and Ron got off of what turned out to be Kreature, now laying on the ground completely motionless. "Bloody hell." Ron said examining his finger. "Stupid git bit me!" He yelled.

"What happened?" Hermione asked.

"We were digging through the cabinets to find something to make to eat when he came running at us demanding to know what we were doing here!" Ron said pointing to Kreature.

"I'm sure you guys just startled him." Hermione said looking at the house elf that laid on the ground.

"Hermione… seriously." Ron said looking at her like she was crazy. "How many active members are in S.P.E.W. again?" Hermione cheeks turned red and she glared at Ron. "That's what I thought. You are the only one in the entire wizarding world who sticks up for them."

"I like Dobby." Harry said, trying to stop a fight that was imminent.

"Dobby?" Draco asked, recognizing the name. "That same crazy elf that used to work for my family?"

"Yeah. Same one that practically tried to have me killed second year as well." Harry said with a laugh.

Hermione released the spell on Kreature and he quickly jumped up, turning and pointing at Harry. "That house elf is a disgrace to all the other house elves."

"Dobby is a great elf!" Harry snapped. "And he's a free elf!"

Kreature threw his hand in the air and walked away from the group back to his room, muttering something that none of them could make out.

Once he was out of ear shot, Hermione decided to speak. "So me and Draco were talking and… we want to go get married tomorrow."

"Tomorrow?" Harry and Ron asked at the same time.

"Why so soon?" Harry wondered.

"Well, we don't know when the next opportunity will be." Draco said.

"You guys are going to be there… right?" Hermione asked.

Ron exhaled a deep breath, remembering what Harry had said about their marriage and rolled his eyes as the words played through his head. Harry, however, smiled and nodded his head. "Of course we will."

Hermione and Draco smiled at each other, and then Draco thought of something. "What are we going to do with Rosie?"

"What do you mean?" Hermione asked.

"Oh, well… when I went to the church I never told the priest that we had a baby. I only told him that we had the four of us. We're already pushing it by asking him to marry us for free, I don't want to bring a crying baby with us."

Hermione bit her lip, thinking. "Well, we can't leave her here alone."

"She won't be alone." Harry said. "What about Kreature?"

"Kreature hates me, Harry. He wouldn't watch the offspring of a muggleborn."

"But he would a pureblood." Draco said, walking over towards the small door that Kreature walked through and tapping on it lightly. A couple seconds later, the door opened slightly and Kreature poked his head out. "Can we talk to you?"

Kreature let out a little laugh. "Talk to you? I would rather hit myself with a frying pan then stay in a room full of blood traitors and mudbloods."

"I'm a pureblood." Draco said, causing Kreature to raise his ears and walk out of the door slightly.

"But you're still with this group, aren't you?"

"Well, yes." At this, Kreature slammed the tiny door in Draco's face.

Draco pressed his ear to the door and listened closely to what he was saying. "Stupid blood traitors, trying to get me to help them. Kreature will only and has only helped the purest of purebloods. Kreature wishes to help Miss Bella and Miss Cissy again, they were great and powerful purebloods. They-"

"Cissy as in Narcissa?" Draco questioned through the door. "Are you talking about Narcissa Malfoy?" There was silence and then suddenly the door opened.

"Kreature doesn't like being listened to."

"Is that who you're talking about?"

"Yes. Miss Cissy was always so nice to Kreature. She-"

"She's my mother." Draco said. "My name is Draco Malfoy."

Kreature stared at Draco, searching him up and down and then his eyes got even bigger then possible and he bowed down low to the ground. "My apologies Mister Malfoy. I didn't realize."

"That's okay." Draco said smiling, happy to have gotten the house elf to get on his side. "Can you do me a favor, Kreature?"

Kreature looked past Draco and stared at Harry, Ron, and Hermione, who were all standing nervously, hoping Draco's plan was going to work. "For them as well?"

"Don't worry about them." Draco said blocking Kreature's view. "Can you help me?" Kreature looked around unconvinced. "My mother… Miss Cissy, wants me to get this done tomorrow but I need somebody to watch my daughter. Can you watch her while we go and do what we have to do?"

"Miss Cissy wants this done?"

"She told me to." Kreature looked around the room and then nodded. Draco turned back to Hermione with a huge smile plastered on his face. She smiled back, not believing that she would be getting married in less than twenty four hours.

* * *

_Yay! Draco and Hermione are going to be getting married! But does anybody see the problem ; )_

_Pretty sure this is one of the longest chapters in the story so far, so i think that deserves some long reviews! tell me what you're guesses are on what the possible problem could be. ill dedicate the next chapter to whoever gets it right first!_


	48. fourty eight: they went to far

_This chapter is dedicated to two people. The first person is darknessqueen4u and the second is raihana175. I'll explain why at the end._

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_Last Chapter "Miss Cissy wants this done?"_

_"She told me to." Kreature looked around the room and then nodded. Draco turned back to Hermione with a huge smile plastered on his face. She smiled back, not believing that she would be getting married in less than twenty four hours._

* * *

Hermione woke up the next morning and inhaled a deep breath as she stared up at the ceiling from her bed. She smiled when she felt a pair of lips touch her cheek. She turned her head and saw Draco smiling back at her. "Good morning." She said, turning on her side and pushing Draco's blonde hair out of his eyes. He gave her another kiss followed by a goofy smile, causing Hermione to laugh. "What's with the funny face?"

"I was just thinking that this is how I'm going to wake up for the rest of my life." Hermione blushed at Draco's words and quickly gave him a kiss to hide it. "Are you nervous?" He asked seriously.

"I always thought that this day would be nerve racking for me, but it's actually not." Draco looked at her confused, the butterflies having been in his stomach since he woke up. "The fact that I'm going to be spending the rest of my life with one person gives me the chills, but then I remember that it's you and I get a different set of chills. I think this is supposed to happen, I think we were always meant to fall in love, and because of that… I'm not nervous."

They both smiled at each other before giving each other another kiss. Hermione then threw her legs over the side of the bed and rubbed her eyes. She stood up and walked over towards the clothes she had been wearing for months now and changed back into them. "It's still early. We can sleep more." Draco pointed out.

"I know." Hermione said, finishing buttoning up her jeans. "But I need to feed Rosie still before we go. Not to mention we're all going to need to eat since we'll have to make the walk back towards the muggle village the church is at."

"Think Potter and Weasley are up yet?" Draco asked, throwing his legs over the side of the bed and getting changed.

Hermione laughed. "Harry probably is, but not Ron. Now that Ron has an actual bed and not just some cot he'll probably go into hibernation."

Draco laughed as he finished changing. Hermione walked over towards the bassinet and ran her hand over Rosie's head lightly. Rosie stirred in her sleep and eventually started to cry softly from being waked up. Hermione carefully picked her up and laid her in her arms, swinging her back and forth and humming a tune. Draco smiled at the scene in front of him and walked over to join Hermione. He gave his daughter a kiss on the head and then gave Hermione a kiss before walking out of the room so she could feed their daughter.

Draco made his way downstairs and into the kitchen, finding it empty. He shrugged and made his way towards the cabinets, searching for a pan to cook breakfast in. After a few minutes of searching he was able to get everything he needed and opened the fridge to start cooking. He used his wand to crack the eggs over the pan and just as he was about to start the bacon, the door opened and Kreature walked into the room. Draco greeted him with a smile but Kreature let out a little squeal and ran towards Draco.

Draco was caught off guard and took a step back from the stove, staring at the house elf with wide eyes as he stopped in front of his feet. "Master must not cook his own meals." Kreature said jumping up on a chair and grabbing the spatula out of Draco's hand to take over the cooking.

Draco reached and tried to grab it back from Kreature, knowing that Hermione wouldn't like the fact that the house elf was doing the work. "Kreature it's okay."

"No." Kreature snapped. "It's an honor to serve you breakfast. Kreature is honored to serve the son of Miss Cissy."

Draco exhaled a deep breath and threw his arms in the air in defeat. "Fine. But you need to cook breakfast for everybody else then to."

"If that is what master wants then that is what master shall get."

"And I'm not your master, Kreature." Draco said walking over towards the tea pot and pouring himself a cup. Once he got the cup he went and took a seat at the kitchen table as Hermione walked in the room.

She glanced at Kreature cooking the meal and then looked at Draco. "Why is he cooking?"

"He wanted to." Draco said shrugging his shoulders. Hermione shook her head and then took a seat next to Draco, leaning in to give him a kiss. Draco quickly shook his head and then glanced at Kreature to make sure he wasn't paying attention, then turned back to Hermione. "Not around Kreature." He said in a whisper so only Hermione could hear. "He won't watch Rosie if he thinks I'm a blood traitor." Hermione nodded in agreement and then situated Rosie in her arms so she was more comfortable. "Want some tea?"

"Sure." Draco stood up and quickly made Hermione a cup of tea, then sat back down next to her, placing her tea in front of her. "I woke up Harry and Ron. I figured we should get an early start considering the walk."

"It shouldn't take as long as coming here. We won't have Rosie with us now." Draco said as Kreature placed a plate in front of him and Hermione and then the last two in the two empty spots. "Thanks Kreature." Draco said taking a bite of his eggs. Kreature took a bow low to the ground and then walked out of the room. "Want me to hold Rosie while you eat."

"No, you eat. I can manage." Hermione said holding Rosie in one arm and stabbing her food with her other.

"Is that bacon?" Hermione and Draco looked up at the door frame and noticed Harry and Ron finally joining them for breakfast, Ron already jumping into his seat and devouring his food.

"If I didn't know your mum so well, Ron, I would think that she didn't teach you table manners."

"What!" Ron said with a mouth full, looking up at the group, all eyes on him in disbelief.

"When are we leaving?" Harry asked, taking his first bite of his breakfast.

"After breakfast I guess." Draco said, finishing his plate and pushing it to the side. "There might be a dress here that you can wear if you want, Hermione."

Hermione let out a little laugh. "As much as I would love to wear a dress, I'm not going to go walking through all those woods in one."

"Good point."

---------------------

"Okay Kreature. Make sure she gets fed properly and keep checking her to see if she needs to be changed. I already gave her a bath so you just have to keep an eye on her." Hermione said as her and Draco stood in their bedroom, giving Kreature the run down.

Kreature looked disgusted to the fact that Hermione, a muggleborn, was telling him what to do. "Just don't let anything happen to her, Kreature." Draco said sternly, eyeing down the elf.

"Of course Mister Malfoy." Kreature said with a bow.

"Come on Hermione, let's go." Draco said, grabbing Hermione's hand and pulling her out as she still yelled orders and be careful's at Kreature. They walked down the stairs and into the main hallway where Harry and Ron were waiting for them. "Don't worry about Rosie, Hermione." Draco said giving her a kiss on the cheek. "She'll be fine. Right now we have to worry about getting to the church at a reasonable time so we can get married."

"I know, Draco." Hermione said kindly as they met up with Harry and Ron. "Ready?" She asked her friends. Harry and Ron both nodded, so they turned and headed out of the door to Grimmauld Place and started heading back towards the muggle village.

----------------------

They arrived at the front step of the church at around ten that night. Hermione and Draco both smiled at each other, exhaled a deep breath and then opened the doors. The church was empty except for a man kneeling down at the front of the church. He stood up when he heard the door close and turned around, smiling at the group before him. Draco recognized him as the priest and approached him, pulling Hermione along after him. "You have a knack for coming late, son."

"I'm sorry. Would you rather us come back at an early time?"

The priest just smiled and shook his head no. "Love cannot wait, my boy." Draco nodded and smiled as the priest turned towards Hermione. "Is this your fiancé that you told me so much about?"

"Thank you so much for doing this." Hermione said with a kind smile.

"It's no problem." The priest gave Hermione a comforting smile and then turned towards Harry and Ron. "And these are your witnesses I presume."

"Yes sir." Draco said.

"Well then let's get started." The priest said claping his hands together lightly. The priest lined them all up in their correct spots and then walked Hermione towards the back of the church, telling her when to walk down the aisle. Once the music started, Hermione exhaled a deep breath and walked down the aisle, not taking her eyes off Draco. They both smiled at each other and then held hands when Hermione reached Draco. "Dearly beloved, we are gathered here today…"

Hermione and Draco didn't really pay attention to what the priest was saying. To them, the world had stopped moving and what was meant to happen from the beginning was happening right now… before their very eyes. They heard the words come out of his mouth, but they became lost in each other eyes and each others love. Hermione only looked away from Draco once, and when she did, it wasn't for very long. She looked over Draco's shoulder to see Harry smiling at her, nodding his head, then her attention was back on Draco's silver eyes.

"You can repeat after me." The priest said kindly, turning to Draco. "I, Draco Malfoy, take you Hermione Granger, to be my wife…."

"I, Draco Malfoy, take you Hermione Granger, to be my wife…."

"To have and to hold from this day forward, for better or for worse…."

"To have and to hold from this day forward, for better or for worse…."

"For richer, for poorer, in sickness and in health, to love and to cherish…."

"For richer, for poorer, in sickness and in health, to love and to cherish…."

"From this day forward until death do us part."

"From this day forward until death do us part." Draco finished, watching tears of happiness travel slowly down Hermione's face.

The priest then turned to Hermione and smiled kindly at her. "You can now repeat after me. "I, Hermione Granger, take you Draco Malfoy, to be my husband…."

"I, Hermione Granger, take you Draco Malfoy, to be my husband…."

"To have and to hold from this day forward, for better or for worse…."

"To have and to hold from this day forward, for better or for worse…."

"For richer, for poorer, in sickness and in health, to love and to cherish…."

"For richer, for poorer, in sickness and in health, to love and to cherish…."

"From this day forward until death do us part."

"From this day forward until death do us part." Hermione smiled deeply as Draco wiped the tears from her cheek.

"I now pronounce you husband and wife." The priest said, turning towards Draco. "You may kiss the bride."

Before Hermione could even prepare herself for the kiss, Draco had his lips pressed against hers and his hands on her waist, lifting her in the air and spinning her in circles while they still locked their lips. They both laughed and connected foreheads, never wanting to leave site of one another. Everybody smiled at the scene before them. Even Ron couldn't hold back a smile for the happiness he saw in his best friend.

------------------------

They traveled back to Grimmauld Place that night, all laughing and talking. The mood and awkwardness between the group seemed to lighten up excessively. Everybody seemed to be getting along and they all felt like nothing could go wrong, but they were highly mistaken.

They rounded the corner that held Grimmauld Place, and froze in their spot, all laughter and smiles disappearing completely. The door to Grimmauld Place was held onto the door frame by one hinge and was half inside the house and half outside and the one visible curtain was ripped and hanging by a thread. Hermione was the first to sprint for the house, followed closely by Draco and then Harry and Ron.

The scene that lay before them was horrific. Tables and lamp post lay on the ground, pictures and painting lay broken and shattered, holes lay in the wall from spells, and an eerie silence was taking over the house. "Rosie!" Hermione yelled running up the stairs towards where her daughter should be laying.

The three boys stood in their spots, staring around at the house, not believing what had happened in their absence. "Kreature." Draco said, realizing the absence of the house elf. "Where's Kreature?"

They suddenly heard a grunting and a moaning noise coming from under one of the fallen tables and all three boys ran towards it. They lifted it up and sure enough, a beat up and bloody house elf lay underneath. "Oh my god." Draco said, afraid to touch Kreature and make things worse. "Kreature what happened?" Draco asked quietly.

The house elf glanced up at Draco with his big eyes and opened his mouth to say something, but nothing came out. After what looked like a couple minutes of a struggle to speak, the house elf was finally able to get one word out, a word that sent Draco over the edge with anger. "Death eaters."

And with these words, Kreature's ears fell and his eyes closed as he let his last breath escape his lips. Draco stared at the house elf, anger pulsating through his entire body. He was angry and now it was getting out of hand.

"Draco!" Hermione yelled from upstairs.

Draco was torn from his thoughts as he raced up the stairs, followed by Harry and Ron. Draco ran towards where his instincts told him to go, and reached Hermione within seconds. He found her standing over the bassinet, tears running down her cheeks. "She's gone." Hermione managed to get out before she fell to her knees on the ground. Draco ran over to her and picked her up, holding her tightly against his chest. She rested her hands on his chest and cried into his shirt as Draco ran his hand along her back. "What happened?" Hermione asked, her head still buried in Draco's chest.

"Death eaters." Draco said quietly. "Don't worry, Hermione. We're going to save Rosie."

"We are?" Hermione asked, looking up at Draco with tears still running down her cheeks.

"Yeah. This time… they went to far."

* * *

: ( _sorry for the sad chapter guys, but i still hope you liked it. _

_now the reason that this chapter is dedicated to two people is what im about to explain. darknessqueen4u guessed first what would happen exactly... so thats why she gets this chapter. raihana175 gets this dedicated to her because she made a correct guess as well, although it hasn't been brought up yet in the story. so good job to both of you guys for figuring it out!!!_

_okay, so who can take a guess on the groups next move? let me know, i love to know what you guys are thinking!_


	49. fourty nine: i told you

_Last Chapter: "Death eaters." Draco said quietly. "Don't worry, Hermione. We're going to save Rosie."_

_"We are?" Hermione asked, looking up at Draco with tears still running down her cheeks._

_"Yeah. This time… they went to far."_

* * *

"How are we going to save her? Saving her is suicide."

"Well we can't just leave her there."

"Do you actually think that Voldemort will do something to Rosie? I mean, come on… he put part of his soul inside of her, he's not about to hurt her."

Hermione was half paying attention to the argument that was raging between the boys. They all sat in the living room at Grimmauld Place. Harry had one of the old rocking chairs occupied, leaning forward with his elbows rested on his knees, Ron had pulled one of the chairs in from the kitchen and was sitting on it backwards, while Draco and Hermione occupied the love seat. Draco had his arm wrapped around Hermione's shoulders as she rested her head on his chest, staring down at the carpet that covered the wood floor.

"You never know with Voldemort. He's unpredictable." Harry pointed out.

Harry and Ron continued their arguing about what their next move should be. Neither really knew what to do and the fact that Hermione hadn't said a word since she cried into Draco's chest in the bedroom, and also the fact that Draco hadn't really chipped in any ideas because he was so worried about his daughter and what was running through Hermione's mind.

"I think the thing we should be asking ourselves is how did they find us?" Ron asked.

"There were death eaters all over Diagon Alley. Maybe one of them saw us and followed us here." Harry pointed out.

"Or, maybe somebody told them we were here." Ron said, his eyes finding Draco's.

"DON'T YOU DARE!" Everybody turned their heads and glanced over at a now standing Hermione. She was red in the face, hands clenched together at her sides, she was biting her lips together, and her chest was raising fast from how fast she was breathing. "How can you even say such a thing!" Hermione screamed at Ron. "How can you still think that he's on their side!? HOW!?" Ron opened his mouth to say something, but found that he didn't know what to say. What could you say to somebody who just had their child kidnapped and was taking their fury out on you? Hermione shook her head and closed her eyes, allowing tears to run down her cheeks. "I hate you." She said softly, opening her eyes after a few seconds and glancing back at Ron, who was staring at her with an open mouth and hurt eyes.

Hermione licked her lips and found a spot on the ceiling to concentrate on, trying to stop the tears from falling down her face. "Hermione… sit back down." She heard Draco say softly. When she felt him grab her hand she yanked hers from his grasps and sprinted up the stairs. Draco stood up and glared at Ron before running up the stairs after Hermione. He reached the top of the stairs when he heard the door to the room that him, Hermione, and Rosie had occupied the night before slam shut. He approached it slowly and then turned the handle, happy to find that it was unlocked. He opened the door only enough so he could slip in and then closed it lightly behind him, locking it shut. He turned to Hermione and saw that she was facing the empty bassinet, one hand covering her eyes while the other one rested on her hip. "Hermione?" Draco called quietly, approaching her slowly.

She didn't turn to face him or say anything, but Draco could hear her crying and he knew that she needed somebody right now. She was a mother who had lost her child, even if she didn't want the child at first, she still lost her.

Draco grabbed Hermione's hand that rested on her hip and held it in his grasps lightly. "Hermione…" Draco said in a whisper, leaning forward somewhat to try and get a glimpse at her face. "Hermione please-"

"I told you somebody was following us!" Hermione yelled, turning around quickly to face Draco and ripping her hand from his. "I told you that I felt somebody following us after we left the ministry!"

"I know you did Hermione and-"

"Rosie is gone because you ignored the fact that somebody was following us!" Hermione said, now approaching Draco and smacking him with her fist. 'This is all your fault!"

"Hermione, calm down." Draco said, trying to act calm himself but finding tears coming to his eyes at the realization that she was probably correct.

"Rosie is gone and it's your fault, Draco Malfoy!" Hermione yelled, continuing to slap him as Draco tried to grab hold of her so she would stop attacking him. Within a couple minutes, Draco was able to finally grab hold of her wrist, and although she kept fighting and hitting him, he was able to wrap his arms around her in a hug. "Rosie is gone… she's… gone!"

Hermione was no longer screaming at Draco, instead she screamed and wailed for her daughter. She had stopped her assault on Draco in mid swing towards his chest and instead broke down in tears of sadness and loss. She rested the side of her head on Draco's chest as tears soaked the front of Draco's shirt and her hands laid in fist, pressed against his shoulders. Draco shook his head and bit his lips together, trying to control the tears that ran down his cheeks. They both cried, Hermione more than Draco and more for the actual loss of their daughter. Draco cried for the loss of their daughter as well, but also for the fact that even though he knew Hermione didn't actually blame him, he couldn't help but realize that she was right.

If he had just taken her advice and not traveled back to Harry and Ron at that specific moment, then they could have lost whoever was on their trail and they would still have Rosie.

Draco ran his hand over Hermione's brown curls as she wept into his chest, sniffling every couple of minutes. He rested his chin on the top of her head and found himself swinging Hermione back and forth lightly to calm her down. Once the rocking started, Hermione seemed to stop her crying. She nuzzled her head closed to Draco's chest and squeezed her arms around him tighter. "I'm sorry." She said just loud enough for Draco to hear her, closing her eyes and falling into something like a trance in Draco's arms.

Draco didn't say anything after she apologized, instead he just continued to rock her back and forth. When he noticed Hermione's grip starting to loosen, he removed his chin from her head and looked at her. Her eyes were closed and she was breathing heavy, almost like she was asleep. Draco rubbed her back and then exhaled a deep breath. "Come on, Hermione." He said in a whisper, releasing his grip and picking up Hermione bridal style and carrying her over towards the bed.

Instead of placing her down on the bed, he climbed in and sat in the corner with his back against the two walls. He placed Hermione in his lap so her head was resting in-between his neck and his shoulder and her legs were curled up over his. "I love you." Hermione whispered as she made herself more comfortable on Draco's lap, placing her hands on his chest and turning more sideways then Draco placed her, causing her to dig her head into Draco's collar bone comfortably.

Draco exhaled a deep breath, kissing Hermione on her forehead before resting his head on the wall and closing his eyes. "Some honeymoon." Draco said to himself before falling into a deep sleep with the woman he loved in his lap and his daughter completely out of his reach.

* * *

_So i realize that this is CRAZY short and i am truely sorry!! I just wanted to give you guys something before i went away for a couple days._

_ALSO this chapter goes out to one of my favorite readers and reviewers: riahana175 becuase sunday is her birthday!! HAPPY BIRTHDAY!_


	50. fifty: what she can and can't take

_Last Chapter: Draco exhaled a deep breath, kissing Hermione on her forehead before resting his head on the wall and closing his eyes. "Some honeymoon." Draco said to himself before falling into a deep sleep with the woman he loved in his lap and his daughter completely out of his reach. _

* * *

"Hermione won't like this idea. We won't hear the end of it."

Hermione woke up at the mention of her name but kept her eye lids shut tight against her eyes. "I know." She heard Harry say softly. "But we don't have a choice. Hermione is smart and she'll realize that what we're doing has to be done. There isn't any other way." Hermione felt Draco's chest rise from under her and heard him exhale a deep breath. "Think she'll be waking up any time soon?" Harry questioned.

"I don't know." Draco said softly. "She's been asleep for a while now, but she's also been through a lot." Hermione felt Draco place his hand on her leg and kiss the top of her head gently.

"Right." Harry agreed. "Well I guess I'll go to bed since she's obviously not going to be waking." Hermione heard the chair grind across the mahogany floor and the door open and shut slowly.

Hermione stirred in Draco's arms before slowly opening her eyes and glancing up at Draco's pale face. He seemed to be staring across the room, lost in his thoughts. Hermione slowly raised her hand and brought it to his cheek, massaging it with her thumb. When he didn't pay her any attention, Hermione sat up more and placed the hand that was on his cheek on his chest. "Draco?" She called softly. "Draco, are you okay?"

Draco, noticing the worry in her voice, looked down at her and faked a smile. "I'm fine."

"You're lying." Hermione said pulling herself away from Draco and sitting up properly so she could look at him closely. "What's really the matter?"

"I've just been thinking."

"About what?"

"About Rosie and what you said to me this morning." Draco answered, lowing his head and licking his lips.

"Draco…" Hermione uttered softly, grabbing one of his hands in both of hers. "Forget about what I said. I don't really blame you. I was just upset and because of that I overreacted."

Draco looked up at her and shook his head. "You didn't overreact. You acted like any mother would act if they had their child kidnapped from them."

"Just don't blame yourself, Draco." Hermione said leaning into Draco's arms and resting her head on his shoulder. She closed her eyes as he kissed the top of her head and ran his hand over the center of her back. "Soon we'll be leaving here and finding our way towards Rosie again. We'll save her and everything will be like it used to be." Draco suddenly stopped rubbing her back and Hermione could feel him becoming more tense. She looked up at him and noticed that he had turned even more pale then before and was not licking his lips like crazy. "What's wrong?"

"Let's go get you something to eat." Draco said quickly, trying to change the subject. He pushed Hermione off his lap delicately and went to make his way for the door, but Hermione held tightly onto his hand, pulling him back and keeping him from leaving. "Come on Hermione, you have to be hungry."

"We are going to save Rosie, right?" Draco stared deep into Hermione's eyes, not knowing how to break her the news. He was hoping that Harry or Ron would do it, but now it appeared he would have to be the one to do it. "Right!?" Hermione yelled, tears coming to eyes at the realization that they probably weren't going to be saving her daughter.

"Let's just go downstairs and get you something to eat and drink." Draco said trying to pull Hermione up from the bed.

"No, Draco. Tell me now!"

"Hermione, please, this is hard for all of us." Draco said quietly, approaching Hermione slowly and grabbing her other hand in his. He slowly pulled her from the bed and wrapped his arms around her in a bear hug. "I'll tell you when we get downstairs, okay?"

Hermione nodded and Draco released his hug from her and guided her down the stairs. They reached the kitchen and Hermione took a seat on one of the chairs, watching Draco walk around the kitchen making tea and pulling out some biscuits from the cabinets. He placed two on a plate and placed them in front of Hermione. "We've been snacking on those all day. Their isn't much food left in this house and neither of us are expert cooks like…" Draco's voice died out at the thought of the house elf that had been killed trying to protect their child.

Hermione watched Draco as he stared up at the ceiling and ran a hand through his hair. He exhaled a deep breath and then turned back to the tea pot over the stove. "What happened to Kreature?"

"We buried him outback." Draco said softly. "He deserved a better burial then the one we gave him, especially after what he did for us, but we couldn't give him one. We all decided we would wait until the war was over to come back and give him the proper one he deserves." Draco informed Hermione as he grabbed two tea cups and poured himself and Hermione one. He sat across from her, running one hand through his hair as the other wrapped around his tea cup.

Hermione sipped her tea and nibbled on her biscuit. She knew she must be starving, but the fact that her daughter was in the hands of the darkest wizard of all times and the fact that her husband was keeping something important from her, was hiding her hunger. She only ate enough for Draco to be satisfied and sipped at her tea before bringing up Rosie again. "So, when are we going to save Rosie?" Hermione asked cautiously.

Draco looked at Hermione and bit the side of his lip. He took another sip of his tea and then scooted his chair so he was sitting next to Hermione. He grabbed one of her hands in his and leaned towards her, resting his elbows on his knees and looking Hermione deep in the eyes. "We were all talking and we decided that saving Rosie right now isn't the best idea."

"Why?" Hermione said, pulling her hand away from Draco's and staring at him with disbelief.

"Hermione, you're an intelligent human being. Use your common sense." Draco said kindly. "Voldemort made Rosie one of his horcruxes. He's not going to let any harm come to her. The only reason he would of wanted Rosie was to make it easier for him. With Rosie he won't have to look for us because he believes that we'll come for our daughter and will walk right into a trap." Draco continued, grabbing Hermione's hand again. "Right now we need to destroy horcruxes. Destroying them is the only way that we're going to be able to get Rosie back."

"I disagree." Hermione said standing up and walking over towards the window, looking out into the night sky.

Draco exhaled a deep breath and stood up. He approached Hermione from behind slowly and wrapped his arms around her when he reached her. "Do you trust me?" Draco said quietly into Hermione's ear. She bit her lips and nodded slowly, turning her head slightly and looking at Draco. "Then I need you to trust my judgment when I say that Rosie is going to be safe where she is."

Hermione looked deep into Draco's silver eyes and knew that she had to trust him. But somehow, this didn't seem right to her. She understood what he was saying, but could she actually go through with it. Could she live with the fact that her daughter was in the care of the darkest wizard of all time. Could she travel around the country and possibly the world knowing that her daughter was in constant danger of dying or could already be dead? Draco smiled at her slightly and she turned around in his arms. She gave him a quick kiss and nodded her head, allowing the lie to escape her lips. "I trust you and your judgment."

Draco smiled and wrapped her in his arms. Hermione bit her lip and closed her eyes, allowing silent tears to slowly fall down them. She knew what she could and couldn't take, and she couldn't take her daughter being kidnapped.

_i am so so so so so sorry about the wait guys. i had the worst writers block ever! i am not that happy with this chapter either. i basically forced myself to write it because i didnt want to keep you guys waiting for that long. so if you guys didnt think it was that great, then thats why. the next chapter is going to be good (hopefully) because im really looking forward to writing it. _

_so please remember to review!_


	51. fifty one: letters from Hermione

_Last Chapter: Draco smiled at her slightly and she turned around in his arms. She gave him a quick kiss and nodded her head, allowing the lie to escape her lips. "I trust you and your judgment."_

_Draco smiled and wrapped her in his arms. Hermione bit her lip and closed her eyes, allowing silent tears to slowly fall down them. She knew what she could and couldn't take, and she couldn't take her daughter being kidnapped._

* * *

Hermione had finished eating her biscuits and followed Draco back upstairs to their room. Draco was the first to retreat to the bed, followed closely by Hermione. They laid together under the sheets, Hermione wrapped tightly in Draco's embrace. Draco fell asleep within minutes, having spent the entire day laying awake watching over Hermione and making sure she was okay. But Hermione, wasn't going to go to sleep.

She could hear Draco breathing heavily and before long, a snore escaped his mouth. Knowing that Draco was in a deep sleep, Hermione exhaled a deep breath as quietly as she could and pried herself from his arms. Once she was off the bed, she grabbed the sheets and covered Draco up more, the warmth of her body no longer being there. She gave him a kiss lightly on the forehead and then took a step back, staring at Draco for what might be the last time. She smiled slightly as a tear fell down her cheek. "I love you." She whispered before turning her back on Draco and quietly walking out the door.

She slowly walked down the stairs and made her way into the small Black family library. She found three pieces of empty parchment and sat down on the desk, grabbing a quill and writing her goodbye's to her husband and her two best friends in the world, tears staining the parchment. She grabbed all three letters and folded them in half, writing the name of the person the letter was written to on the front and then placing them on the kitchen table where they would be seen.

With her hand on the door knob, she turned back and glanced up one last time at the stairs. She bit her lip as tears fell down her cheeks yet again, but nothing was going to stop her. With a twist of her wrist and the strength she had in her arms, she opened the door and walked outside into the night.

-----------------------

Draco woke up to the sun shining into his eyes. He groaned and turned on his side so the sun was not longer blinding him. "Hermione are you awake?" He asked, still keeping his eyes closed. When he heard no response, he ran his hand over her side of the bed and his eyes shot open when he didn't feel her next to him. He sat up quickly and glanced around the room, hoping that maybe she was just changing.

When he didn't spot the brunette, he quickly through the sheets off of himself and sprinted down the stairs. "Hermione!" He yelled halfway down the stairs. Once he reached the kitchen he froze. His eyes met with the two pieces of parchment lying neatly on the kitchen table. His eyes didn't leave the loopy handwriting of Hermione's that spelled out his name so perfectly, not even when he heard Harry and Ron sprint down the stairs after him. Before long, all three boys were standing in the frame of the doorway, slowly approaching their notes.

Nobody said anything; instead they just wrapped their fingers around the rough parchment and found their own little corner to read their notes.

Harry had his back pressed to the fridge as he read through Hermione's note.

_Dear Harry,_

_First things first, I want you to know that I love you and that I believe in you with all my heart. You have an amazing ability to find the good in people and you're a natural born leader. You are one of, if not the best, wizards of all time. You have so much to carry on your shoulder with Voldemort, and I know that me leaving isn't helping. Harry you must know that what I'm doing I'm doing for a reason. I need you to trust me and my decisions and carry on with what you're supposed to be doing… destroying horcruxes. I'm just sorry I can't be there to help you along the way._

_I know you will understand my decision of leaving and because of that I need to ask you one more favor. I need you to convince Draco and Ron that it was the right decision. They will try and rescue me and you and I both know that it's not a smart thing to do. I know what I'm doing and you know what you need to do. Don't allow our friendship to come between stopping Voldemort, because the safety of the wizarding world is much more important than I am. I will miss you dearly and I hope that we'll see each other again, hopefully when the war is over and Voldemort is nothing but a memory. _

_Your best friend,_

_Hermione_

Ron had found his way over towards one of the chairs. He pulled it out and sat down on it backwards, placing his arms on the top of the back rest and reading the note to himself.

_Dear Ron,_

_The way I said my goodbye to you wasn't the way I would have liked to. I want you to know that I don't hate you Ron. I love you with all my heart, and I wish I could tell you this in person instead of allowing my words written on the paper to say them, but Rosie needs me. Even though I'm pretty sure you won't listen to what I'm telling you to do, I need you to not come and find me. I know what I'm doing and I need you to trust me. _

_I also need you to somehow put your trust in Draco. I know it's hard to do after all those years of hating each other, but I need you to try. You really are a kind and loving person Ron, and Harry and Draco are going to need you to humor them and help pull the group through. _

_I am going to miss you Ronald, and I hope that I'll get to see you again, hopefully in celebration of the death of Voldemort. _

_Your best friend,_

_Hermione_

Draco gripped his letter tightly in his fingers and found himself slowly backing up into one of the walls. As he opened his letter and began to read it, he slowly fell to the floor, to the point of when he was done; his legs would be pressed against his chest and his butt laying flat on the ground.

_Dearest Draco,_

_My tears are staining your note more than they were Harry and Ron's, but yet I don't know what to say in this note that you don't already know or already guessed. I lied to you in a way Draco and I'm so sorry for that. I want you to know that I do trust your judgment with all my heart, but I can't trust Voldemorts. Even though Voldemort made Rosie one of his horcruxes and he wouldn't do anything to kill her, she's still a newborn. Being as young as she is, she still needs her mother. That is the reason I left. I can't leave my daughter in the hands of the darkest wizard of all time without being there to protect her._

_As hard as it may be, I need you to not come and save me. You are need there, with Harry and Ron. You need to help them destroy horcruxes, and by saving me you'll be locked up in a cell at your own home, awaiting death. With me gone, Harry and Ron are going to need somebody to push them and keep them motivated and moving. They are going to need your brains and your knowledge about dark magic and Voldemort. Please Draco, trust me and know that I can take care of myself. _

_I also need you to know that I can't express how much I love you with words, but I will certainly try. If somebody was to tell me a year ago that I would be married to Draco Malfoy, I would have told them they were crazy. And if they were to tell me that Draco Malfoy would be my soul mate, my prince charming, my happily ever after, I would of laughed in their faces even harder and told them to check themselves into St. Mungos for the rest of their lives. _

_You were right when you said that everything happens for a reason Draco. I love you so much and I just hope that when this is all over we'll be able to restart our lives. We can get married the wizarding way, move in together, teach Rosie how to be a great witch, send her off to Hogwarts followed closely by a brother or a sister a couple years later, watch our children have children, and grow old together. I believe that nothing, not even Voldemort, can stop us from having this future together, and I know that deep down inside you feel the same way. _

_I love you Draco. Don't ever forget this._

_Your wife,_

_Hermione_

Draco could feel the hot tears running down his cheeks as he read over the note again, and then looking up at the other two in the room, all lost in the thoughts of the same thing: Hermione.

---------------------

Hermione inhaled a deep breath as she approached the gates of Malfoy Manor. Once she was standing in front of the gates, a deep voice spoke to her from a place she couldn't find. "Why have you come here?"

Hermione licked her lips and gulped before speaking. "My name is Hermione Granger. I have come for my daughter." The gates squealed open and Hermione took her first steps into her Hell on Earth.

* * *

_So i felt so bad about leaving you guys with a short chapter after the week and a half without any updates, that i sat down and wrote this one. I'm actually pretty proud of this one and starting to get back on track with updating every other day if i can. hope you guys liked it and sorry about the cliffy, but hey, thats how i keep you guys on the edge of your seats : )_

_review please!_


	52. fifty two: her words of love

_Last Chapter: Hermione inhaled a deep breath as she approached the gates of Malfoy Manor. Once she was standing in front of the gates, a deep voice spoke to her from a place she couldn't find. "Why have you come here?"_

_Hermione licked her lips and gulped before speaking. "My name is Hermione Granger. I have come for my daughter." The gates squealed open and Hermione took her first steps into her Hell on Earth._

* * *

She allowed her feet to carry her up the gravel pathway that led to the front door of Malfoy Manor. Her heart raced faster and faster with every step she took and she could feel her body becoming weaker and more frightened at the realization that there was no turning back now. She was in enemy territory and this time, nobody was going to come and save her.

She watched as the door suddenly opened and she closed her eyes and inhaled the fresh air surrounding her, still walking towards the open door. When she heard laughter she opened her eyes and became face to face with Bellatrix and Avery. "Welcome back mudblood." Bellatrix said with a laugh before taking away Hermione's wand, grabbing her by her hair, and dragging her inside, slamming the door hard behind her. "I hope you enjoyed the time you spent with you blood traitor of a boyfriend, mudblood." Bellatrix sneered, dragging Hermione down one of the long narrow hallways.

Hermione wanted nothing more than to get smart and yell that Draco was her husband and not her boyfriend, but decided that it was best to keep her mouth shut. She didn't want to give them the satisfaction that she was broken or bothered by the fact that they could easily get her in their grasps by kidnapping Rosie. "I must say mudblood, I am looking forward to watching you die. You're of no use to us anyway other then luring your little friends right into our grasps. You fell for it with your pathetic excuse for a child, why shouldn't they?"

Hermione bit her lip and inhaled a deep breath, trying to keep herself calm and not overreact. The fact that Bellatrix was waving how easily Hermione had come to the Manor in front of her face, however, was making Hermione's temper rise and she was finding it extremely hard to keep calm.

"I must say," Avery said from behind Bellatrix. "Kidnapping your daughter was a lot easier than I thought it would be, especially since you had that pathetic house elf watching over her." Avery let out a cold laugh before he continued. "You would have been better off asking a dog to guard the child. At least the dog would have put up a reasonable fight before I snapped it's neck."

At Avery's words, Hermione lost all control. She flung herself against Bellatrix, catching her off guard and causing her to lose her balance and almost topple over, and ran straight for Avery. As Avery reached to pull out his wand and Hermione was a mere inch from tackling him to the ground, she felt somebody grab her wrist and pull her back. She tried to fight the person off, but their boney and cold fingers locked tightly on her wrist then quickly on her free arm, pulling her even farther away from Avery. "You stupid son of a bitch!" Hermione screamed, sending a mouthful of spit in Avery's direction and still fighting off who she guessed was Bellatrix holding her back. "I'm going to kill you!"

Hermione let out a little squeal as she felt Bellatrix pull her hair tightly, sending her head all the way back. With Hermione pressed up against Bellatrix and a wand at her revealed throat, Avery straightened out his robe and glared at Hermione. "Somebody has gotten a little feisty since they escaped." Bellatrix said through her teeth.

"We'll just see how _feisty_ she is in front of the dark lord." Avery said still glaring at Hermione as he walked in front of Bellatrix and started heading down the hallway. Bellatrix shoved Hermione forward, still with a tight grip on her arm and a wand at her throat, following closely after Avery.

They reached the familiar library doors, only this time they didn't knock. Avery forced the door open and they quickly walked into the room. Hermione kept her head up high, eyes wandering the room looking for Rosie. As they reached the center of the floor Hermione could feel Bellatrix loosen her grip and Hermione was shoved onto the floor, landing on her stomach. Hermione kept her head low and her eyes on the ground. She could feel everybody in the room watching her and the last thing she wanted to do was look back at them.

She closed her eyes and tried to calm her breathing, but trying to relax completely left her mind when she heard the cold laugh fill the room. She slowly lifted her head up and her eyes locked with the red snake like eyes that belonged to none other than Lord Voldemort. "Nice of you to join us, Ms. Granger."

Hermione licked her lips and with all the strength she had, she placed her hands on the floor and pushed herself up, standing and facing the devil himself. "Where's my daughter?" Hermione said in what she hoped was a strong and brave voice, but she had a feeling it came out shaky and nervous.

"Not to worry, mudblood. She's safe… for now."

"I want my daughter." Hermione demanded through her teeth. "You have what you wanted, now let me have my daughter."

"Actually, we don't have what we want, but your daughter is going to help us get it." Voldemort said standing up and walking in circle around Hermione slowly. "You, my little mudblood, are going to tell me everything I want to know or else I'll make it so you never get to see your daughter again."

"You won't kill her." Hermione snapped back, not taking her eyes of Voldemort. "You made her a horcrux or yours, you're not just going to kill her."

"Foolish girl. A horcrux is in the soul, not the body. You can kill the body and have the soul live… have the horcrux live." Hermione stared at Voldemort in disbelief as he circled her. "Now, tell me,… what use was the toad of a woman Umbridge to you?"

"Go screw yourself." Hermione stated, clenching her fist at her sides.

With a flick of his wand, Voldemort sent the cruciatus curse through Hermione's body, sending her to the ground and shaking with pain. He approached her after he released the curse, putting his foot under her and kicked her over on her side as Hermione caught her breath. "You are testing me mudbl-" Voldemort stopped short with his threat as he glanced down at the wedding finger on Hermione's hand. He let out a cold laugh as he pointed his wand at Hermione hand and she felt the ring slip off her finger and float right into Voldemort's hand.

"Give that back!" Hermione yelled, standing up and getting ready to charge at Voldemort for the ring. As she finally got her footing, Voldemort quickly flicked his wand and sent Hermione back to the ground, screaming in pain again from the cruciatus curse.

"This is very interesting. I must say I didn't expect to find this." He said over Hermione's screams. He watched Hermione shake in pain for a few more seconds before releasing the curse. "I guess I didn't greet you correctly, did I Mrs. Malfoy?"

Hermione, finally catching her breath, glared up at Voldemort who was sneering down at her. Through her intakes of breath she got a smirk across her face. "No. You didn't."

With her smart remark, Voldemort sent the curse through her again, this time not having it last as long as the other times. "You're a foolish girl and a mudblood. Malfoy is a pureblood. You two could never be one. You're too different and you're not meant to be together. Nobody would allow it."

"You're wrong!" Hermione snapped, finding her Gryffindor courage rise up in her with every breath. "Everywhere around the world people of all sorts are falling in love even though people tell them they're not supposed to. Just because you're different from each other doesn't mean you can't have the potential to love one another. A thestral can fall in love with a unicorn, an owl with a phoenix, a goblin with a house elf, a werewolf with a human, and even…a pureblood with a muggleborn. Just because you and your little followers say that something can't or isn't supposed to happen doesn't mean the whole world is going to bow down to what you're saying! Love is love. It doesn't matter that you're not supposed to be together!"

The entire room stared at Hermione, nobody knowing what to say or what to do. Tired of the silence, Voldemort lazily pointed his wand at Hermione. He allowed the cruciatus curse to leave the tip of his wand and didn't take it off until Hermione blacked out. Needless to say, Hermione would wake up with a bit of delight at the fact that she left an entire room of deatheaters and Voldemort speechless at her words,… her words of love.

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_So i hoped you guys liked it! Im actually really proud of this chapter and Hermione's speech at the end. i just hope you guys liked it as much as i did! _

_so please review and let me know what you thought. also, who do you guys wanna see next? I cant decided if i want to keep goign with Hermione for a couple more chapters or switch to the guys right now. so let me know what you thought and your opinion for the next chapter!!_


	53. fifty three: like the diary

_Last Chapter: The entire room stared at Hermione, nobody knowing what to say or what to do. Tired of the silence, Voldemort lazily pointed his wand at Hermione. He allowed the cruciatus curse to leave the tip of his wand and didn't take it off until Hermione blacked out. Needless to say, Hermione would wake up with a bit of delight at the fact that she left an entire room of deatheaters and Voldemort speechless at her words,… her words of love._

* * *

They sat in the kitchen together, each allowing the gears in their head to turn about the way Hermione had said her goodbyes. They had all expected her to overreact and disagree with their decision to not save Rosie just yet, but they never expected her to run out on them and give herself up to be with her daughter.

After what felt like an eternity of silence, Harry spoke up. "We should get moving. It's too dangerous to stay here anymore." He said seriously as he rose to his feet.

"We going to save Hermione?" Ron asked from his seat at the kitchen table, curious as to their next move.

"No." Harry said simply, wiping the dust off his jeans before starting to leave the kitchen.

"No?" Harry and Ron turned their heads to find Draco still sitting on the ground. His legs were laying straight out in front of him, his hands sat on his lap, holding Hermione's letter for dear life, and his head stayed straight, his eyes focusing on the underside of the kitchen table. He slowly turned his head towards Harry, eyes bloodshot red from crying, cheeks stained from un-wiped tears, and sweat outlining his forehead from stress. Harry and Ron couldn't help but noticed that his already pale skin seemed to be coming more and more pale with each passing moment. "No?!" Draco repeated, anger, frustration, and sadness all spoken in his tone.

Harry exhaled a deep breath and crossed his arms over his chest. "That's right." He said softly, nodding his head a few times. "Hermione asked us not to save her. She knows damn well what she's doing and I think we should respect that and trust her."

"She knows we trust her and respect her already. Not saving her isn't going to prove anything." Draco snapped.

"I never said it would _and_ I never said that she wasn't aware of our trust and respect. All I said was we need to respect her decision and move onto more important things."

"Hermione is _the_ most important thing in my life! Her and Rosie. I would do anything for them."

"Then you need to forget about them for now. Right now we need to worry about horcruxes."

"Screw your horcruxes!" Draco yelled, getting to his feet finally and walking towards the door. "If you two won't help me then fine, I'll save them on my own!"

"Malfoy, wait!" Harry yelled, chasing Draco who was already approaching the door. Harry stuck his hand out and grabbed onto Draco's shoulder, pulling him back, just as he was about to reach the handle. "Now's not the time Malfoy."

Before Harry knew what was happening, Draco turned around to face Harry, grabbed the front of Harry's shirt in his fist, pushed him against the wall, put his wand to his throat, and got in his face. "Now is the time Potter." Draco sneered through his teeth. "I need to save them now because if it wasn't for me nobody would be in this situation! I was so worried about my own safety that I never thought of the danger I was putting everybody else in until it was too late. If I considered it earlier on then I wouldn't have raped her and she wouldn't have gotten pregnant.

"If she didn't get pregnant then she wouldn't have been tortured and wouldn't of spent months locked in a cell in the basement. She wouldn't have had Rosie and if she didn't have Rosie then Rosie wouldn't be a horcrux. If Rosie wasn't a horcrux then we wouldn't be where we are now and everything would be normal. We would all be back at the school, just starting our sixth year. Now's the time to act Potter because I need to stop what I started, I need to rescue them and set everything right. I need to make it so Hermione isn't fighting for her life, Rosie is no longer in danger, and my mother is safe. You can't change the past, but you can alter the future, and I'm going to do just that."

"Would you really change what happened if you could?" Harry asked calmly for having a wand jabbing into the side of his throat.

"Of course I would. Everything would be normal and as it should be. Why would I not change it?"

"Because if you changed it then you wouldn't be in love and married to Hermione, you wouldn't have a daughter, and Ron and I wouldn't think of you as one of our best mates, we would still think you're a stupid Slytherin bastard who only cares about blood status." Harry said with a small smile.

As Harry's words, Draco lowered his wand and released his grip on Harry, taking a couple steps back but never actually taking his eyes off Harry. "W-What?" Draco stammered, not sure he heard Harry correctly.

"Look, Draco," Harry said calmly, approaching Draco slowly. "Me and Ron can only image what you're feeling right now. Having a child being kidnapped and then a wife running away can't be easy, but leaving and finding them is going to put them in more danger then their already in. If Voldemort has you then there's going to be nothing stopping him from killing your mother and torturing Hermione and Rosie… just to torture you." Draco looked up at Harry, sadness and realization in his eyes. "And nothing will stop Voldemort from killing all of you in the end. Voldemort is capable of-"

"I know what he's capable of." Draco snapped, walking over towards the window, crossing his arms over his chest and staring outside. "That… monster ruined my life. He destroyed my childhood by turning my father into nothing but a clone of a 'perfect pureblood deatheater', he forced me to harm and manipulate people, people who did nothing to deserve it, he torture my wife, killed my father, locked my mother in a cell in her own home, kidnapped my daughter _after_ turning her into a horcrux, and managed to get my wife into his grasps by taking away one of the things she loved most in the world." Draco shook his head as he licked his lips. "Whether it's dangerous or not, I have to try. I have to try and save them and in the meantime… I'm going to kill Voldemort." Draco said through his teeth, turning around and facing Harry, noticing Ron for the first time standing in the back of the room watching the two battle it out.

"We're going to save Hermione and Rosie… and we're going to kill Voldemort. But Hermione is right. I don't know what she told you guys, but we need to destroy horcruxes. Right now it's the only way to kill Voldemort and in the long run… save Hermione and Rose." Draco shook his head slightly, biting his lips together and focusing on the ground. He only looked up when he felt a hand on his shoulder. "We need you, Draco. Whether you believe it or not… we do. Will you help us? Will you stay with us and help us destroy horcruxes?"

Draco exhaled a deep breath and slowly nodded his head. Harry was right, they needed to destroy horcruxes. That was their number one priority. Hermione could take care of herself, Draco knew it. Harry smiled and then turned to Ron, who wore a small smile on his face as well, happy that they weren't about to lose another member of the group. "Hold on." Draco said, running a hand through his hair. "How are we supposed to destroy horcruxes if we don't even know what destroys them in the first place."

There was a sudden crash from the kitchen and all three made eye contact before sprinting in to see what made the noise. They saw the cause of the crash the second they entered the room. They window was broken and lying on the ground was a big black rock. Harry approached it slowly, picking it up from the ground. He looked at it confused, flipping it over and examining it before he stopped and yelled for Draco and Ron to come and look. Carved in the rock in messy handwriting were 6 words:

_Like the diary, use the venom._

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hey guys! sorry my chapters have been so short lately, but im just trying to get them out to you so you dont have to wait weeks on end for 3,000 or more words.

hope you liked the chapter and any guess as to who's giving them horcrux hints?

also, one more thing, is there anybody out there good at writing summaries that fit into the tiny space they give you to write them? this story will probably be coming to an end within a month or two and i wanted to start organizing the sequel. i have it all planned out for the most part and i super excited to write it, but i just can't seem to get a good short summary. If there is ANYBODY out there who would be willing to give it a shot for me, i would really appreciate it! Just send me a person message or a review and i'll give you long summary i have written. If you can get it... i'll dedicate a chapter to you! thanks so much!!

oh yeah.... review please : )


	54. fifty four: keep fighting

_Last Chapter: There was a sudden crash from the kitchen and all three made eye contact before sprinting in to see what made the noise. They saw the cause of the crash the second they entered the room. They window was broken and lying on the ground was a big black rock. Harry approached it slowly, picking it up from the ground. He looked at it confused, flipping it over and examining it before he stopped and yelled for Draco and Ron to come and look. Carved in the rock in messy handwriting were 6 words:_

_Like the diary, use the venom._

* * *

She woke up slowly, barely opening her eyes to look at the cell she was in…again. She could feel the cold texture of the cement floor underneath her finger tips and the eerie alone feeling she felt for the whole summer she spent locked up. She licked her chapped lips and, while still lying down on the ground, opened her eyes slowly and glanced around the room. She let out a little sob and closed her eyes as a small tear trickled down her cheek and into the dirt covering the floor in a thin layer.

She inhaled a deep breath trying to calm herself down and not try and feel sorry for herself. She had chosen to get herself into this predicament and now she would have to face her choices head on. She had come to protect her daughter and the only way to do that was to remain strong and fearless, the way of a real Gryffindor.

Hermione slowly wiped the tear from her cheek and pushed herself into a sitting position. The second she was upright, she froze, not believing her ears. She slowly turned around to face the direction of the small baby cry she heard and felt her heart soar when she saw her daughter in the very same room that she was in. What shocked Hermione was the fact that she wasn't alone.

Skeleton like hands wrapped around Rosie, holding her in a tight grip like somebody would try and pry the baby from them at any second. Hermione's eyes traveled slowly up from her daughter to pale and thin woman holding her. She had blue eyes that stared at Hermione through her long blonde hair that now hung loosely around her face, tangled and covered in dirt. "Mrs. Malfoy?" Hermione asked quietly, now slowly standing up and approaching the woman sitting on the ground with her back resting against the wall. "Mrs. Malfoy, is that you?"

"Did they capture you as well?" Narcissa asked quietly, so quietly that Hermione had to strain herself to hear it.

"No ma'am." Hermione said slowly, still cautiously approaching the woman. "I came on my own accord. I needed to be with my daughter."

At the mention of Rosie, Narcissa slowly lowered her head and glanced down at the baby in her arms. Releasing one of her hands from under Rosie, she brought it up to her head and gently pushed her light brown hair to the side and off her forehead. "She is a very good baby. She rarely cries and she's always smiling up at you, which only adds to her beauty. You are very lucky to have her."

"You have her to ma'am." Hermione said, now coming to a halt a few feet from the woman. "She is your granddaughter."

Narcissa looked up at Hermione with realization painted all over her face, almost like she had forgotten that Rosie did belong to her as well. "She'll probably want you to hold her now." She said quietly, holding Rosie up for Hermione to take her. Hermione didn't hesitate and grabbed Rosie from Narcissa's arms, cradling her against her chest and kissing her forehead. Hermione smiled down at her daughter as she stroked the back of her head lightly, happy to finally have her daughter in her arms. "It's unfair."

Hermione brought her attention away from Rosie for a second to see that Narcissa was staring up at them with sadness glazed in her eyes. "What's unfair?"

"You and Draco love each other so much that even a blind man would be able to see it. Your daughter only helps to strengthen that, but yet the three of you will never get to have a life together."

"Why would you say such a thing?" Hermione asked shocked.

"This war is almost over. Families are falling apart and we are all going in our separate ways. Once the Dark Lord wins this war, those who betrayed and fought against him will never see the light of day or a wink of happiness with the people they love."

"After everything that monster has done to you and your family you still support him and what he fights for?"

"I have learned to except what is un-inevitable. The Dark Lord has taken over everything. The only thing that stands in his way now is a 16 year old boy with a lightning scar on his head and a prophecy to lead the way."

"No, there is so much more then that. Harry doesn't work alone, he never has. Right now he is out there destroying horcruxes with Ron and Draco right along side him. But they are just a small percentage of the fighters out there. Not everybody has given up. Some are facing their fears and living out the rest of their life trying to take down Voldemort and some are hiding, staying safe but still waiting. They're waiting for the right opportunity to strike and when it comes, everybody is going to join together, and with Harry at the front of the pack… we'll win."

"You have so much faith in your friends."

"Good always triumphs over evil ma'am." Hermione finished with a kind smile.

"Even when all seems lost, you still keep fighting." Narcissa stated quietly, shaking her head and looking down at the ground.

"We all have to keep fighting, and we all fight for our own reason."

"Why do you fight?"

"For my family." Hermione glanced down at Rosie and smiled at her. "I want to be able to send my daughter off to Hogwarts followed closely by a brother or a sister. I want to watch them become successful in whatever they want to become and find love just like I did. I want to watch them have children of their own and I want to grow old with Draco by my side, no war of blood status to stop us from showing the world how much we really care about each other."

"I have never seen such a determined couple. If you and my son want nothing more than to prove to this world that you belong together and that nothing is going to separate you, then why not get married?"

Hermione lowered her head to the ground to hide her smile. When she looked back up, Narcissa was staring at her with a raised eyebrow, a gesture that reminded Hermione so much of Draco. Hermione licked her lips and slowly made her way to sit down next to Narcissa. Taking a seat at her right side, Hermione pushed her back against the wall and held Rosie in her right arm, holding out her left hand for Narcissa to see. "We did." Narcissa slowly grabbed Hermione's left hand and examined the ring, then glanced up at Hermione with shock painted across her face. "We're going to keep fighting and we're going to prove to this world that nothing, not even the bars of a cell in a dungeon, are ever going to separate the love we share for each other."

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_I'm sorry I'm sorry I'm sorry!!!! I'm the worst ever when it comes to doing what i said i was going to do. I know i said that i would have like 10 hours of just strictly writing this story, but i never considered the fact that the new car my parents bought was going to be so tightly packed in the back seat between me, my brother, and my sister that i wouldnt be able to do anything with my laptop. once again... i'm soooooo sorry! i feel awful for telling you guys you would have a lot of reading to do when really you won't._

_But, i can promise you that by at least tuesday you are going to have at least three more chapters up. I'm going to buy a notebook and get a pen and write out the chapters on the way home so all i'll have to do when i get home is type them up and post them._

_And sorry that chapter was short guys, but i'm pretty much exhausted. There might be another one up tomorrow night, but no promises._

_And please remember to review!_


	55. fifty five: part of your order

_Last Chapter: Hermione lowered her head to the ground to hide her smile. When she looked back up, Narcissa was staring at her with a raised eyebrow, a gesture that reminded Hermione so much of Draco. Hermione licked her lips and slowly made her way to sit down next to Narcissa. Taking a seat at her right side, Hermione pushed her back against the wall and held Rosie in her right arm, holding out her left hand for Narcissa to see. "We did." Narcissa slowly grabbed Hermione's left hand and examined the ring, then glanced up at Hermione with shock painted across her face. "We're going to keep fighting and we're going to prove to this world that nothing, not even the bars of a cell in a dungeon, are ever going to separate the love we share for each other."_

The three boys found themselves all huddled together in a circle, Harry holding the stone in the center for them all to examine. The messy handwriting was intriguing to them and the fact that somebody was out there helping them intrigued them as well. Nobody spoke in the room, all lost in their thought.

"Who do you think threw this?" Ron asked in a whisper, not wanting to disturb anybodies thoughts.

"I recognize this handwriting, but I can't quite put my finger on who it is." Draco responded.

"Dumbledore?" Ron asked.

"This isn't Dumbledore's handwriting." Harry stated. "I know Dumbledore's handwriting from those… lessons… he gave me." Harry said looking at Draco for a split second only to see that he wasn't really paying attention to him.

"It's got to be somebody from your Order." Draco said, holding out his hand for Harry to hand over the stone so he could examine it more carefully.

"Does it really matter who threw it, though?" Ron asked, retreating to the kitchen table and taking a seat, running his hand through his ginger hair.

"Kinda." Said Draco, holding the rock close to his face and looking at the carved writing more closely.

"What matters? We know what we need to do now, don't we?"

"Do we?" Draco asked, looking up at Ron.

"Yeah." Ron said, looking at Draco like he was stupid.

"Malfoy wasn't with us when we went into the Chamber of Secrets Ron. He doesn't know." Harry said crossing his arms and leaning against the wall.

"He still should know the story. Everybody at Hogwarts knew the story." Ron argued.

"Not everybody was fascinated with your daring adventure into the chamber, Weasley." Draco snapped.

"Tom Riddle is Voldemorts real name, as I'm sure you know." Harry said as Draco nodded. "He used the spirit inside of his diary to control the basilisk. Once I killed the basilisk, I took the tooth imbedded in my arm and stabbed the diary, killing the spirit inside of the diary. The diary was one of Voldemorts horcruxes… obviously." Harry finished.

"So we have to use basilisk venom to destroy the horcruxes?" Draco asked, receiving a nod from Harry. "Where in the bloody hell are we going to find basilisk venom?"

"The chamber of Secrets." Harry answered.

"But that's in Hogwarts. I thought Hogwarts was too dangerous for us to get into." Draco said.

"I don't think we have a choice." Harry said, running a hand though his hair.

"And besides, didn't your mom say that Ravenclaw, Hufflepuff, and Slytherin all had a horcrux." Ron stated, remembering what Draco had said in the forest after they first escaped.

"Yeah, but that doesn't mean they're at Hogwarts. They could be anywhere."

"I still say we try and go to Hogwarts. Even if the horcruxes aren't their, we can still talk to Dumbledore and we can go into the Chamber of Secrets and get the venom."

"And we need to leave Grimmauld Place as soon as we can. They know we're here so we need to lose them before they decide to actually move in on us." Harry said, exhaling a deep breath.

"So… Hogwarts?" Ron asked.

"Hogwarts." Harry said with somewhat of a smile, happy to be returning to the place he thought of as his home.

-----------------------

"How did you tell them?" Dumbledore asked, tilting his head and looking at the man through his half moon spectacles.

"Wrote it on a rock and threw it though the window, professor." A deep boring voice said.

"Did they understand?"

"I would imagine they did. It wasn't that hard to figure out."

"Did you happen to hear their next move?"

"No, sir. But they lost the child. It was kidnapped and Granger left to go and be with it. They're more alone and that's going to cause them to make bad decisions Professor. Are you sure they can handle this on their own?"

"Positive." Dumbledore said with a smile. "I have a feeling we'll be seeing them very shortly. Most secret entrances are through the dungeons, so keep an eye out for them if you could."

"Of course, Professor."

"And thank you, Severus." Dumbledore said, crossing his arms over each other on the top of his desk and staring up at the potions teacher with a grateful smile. Snape only nodded back before turning his back on the headmaster and heading back towards the spiral staircase.

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_Sorry the chapters have been so short and so boring lately guys. Don't worry though, things are about to pick up and get a lot more crazy, along with hopefully longer chapters._

_A couple things i thought i should explain, and prob. should of explained earlier but never did. Everything that happened up to order of the pheonix happened. The only difference is that Dumbledore gave Harry his lessons durring the fifth one instead of the sixth, so the the ring is also destroyed. Sorry it's so confusing, but this information might come into play later so you guys need to know this. Any questions don't be afraid to ask. I always answer your questions._

_Pleaseeeeeeeeeeee review guys!_

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	56. fifty six: will save us all

_Last Chapter: "And thank you, Severus." Dumbledore said, crossing his arms over each other on the top of his desk and staring up at the potions teacher with a grateful smile. Snape only nodded back before turning his back on the headmaster and heading back towards the spiral staircase._

* * *

They all met in the main hallway of Grimmauld Place the next morning. Their food bag was restocked and the tent was shrunk to the size of a book, making it easier to carry. Even though they were planning on going straight to Hogwarts, they didn't know if they would be able to get inside safetly or if they had to leave afterwards. Harry was the first to make it into the hallway, his invisibility cloak in his hand for when they would need to hide from unwanted and wandering eyes. Ron came next, the food bag swung around his shoulder, the ten pocking out slight at the top, and a yellow apple in his hand with a bite mark out of the top of it. "Malfoy, hurry up!" Ron yelled up the stairs impatiently. Draco came walking down the stairs a couple minutes later, a book secured tightly under his arm. "What the bloody hell took you so long?" Ron asked when Draco reached the bottom step.

"I was… uh… looking for something." Draco stuttered, nodding slightly and glancing down at the book under his arms.

Harry and Ron looked at the book as well, then glanced at Draco with confusion written all over their faces. "It took you that long to get a _book_?" Ron asked.

When Draco didn't answer him, Ron snatched it from Draco to see what it was. "Hey, give it back you stupid little weasel!" Draco yelled, reaching for the book, but Ron was to quick and held it out of his reach before Draco could grab it.

"Hogwarts a History?" Ron questioned, finally getting to read the book title.

"Why are you bringing that?" Harry asked out of curiosity.

"Well… I-" Draco stopped short, just staring at Harry and Ron and not knowing what to say. Exhaling a deep breath, he lowered his head and answered them truthfully, but in the lowest possible voice he could make it. "Hermione was reading it before she left and…" Draco glanced up at Harry and Ron for only a split second for lowering his head to the ground again. "I'm pretty sure it was her favorite book. It just reminds me of her is all."

Ron rolled his eyes and threw the book back into Draco's hands while Harry couldn't help but smile at the honest in Draco's voice. "I swear Hermione's good heart and kindness is rubbing off on you Malfoy." Ron murmured, walking into the living room and approaching the fireplace, ignoring the looks Draco was giving the back of his head.

Harry followed after Ron, patting Draco on the shoulder and smiling at him on the way. Draco followed, licking his lips and hoping the embarrassment in his cheeks didn't show through his pale skin. "Okay, so we all remember the plan?" Harry asked, grabbing the floo powder off the top of the fireplace. Draco nodded, but Ron still looked unsure. Harry and Draco shook their heads at Ron who only smiled back and shrugged his shoulders. "We floo to Hogsmeade and hope we don't land in a popular store. Once there, we should be able to hide most of ourselves under the invisibility cloak and make our way towards the Honeydukes cellar. We'll take that passageway hidden there and make our way towards Hogwarts. Hopefully we'll make it without any problems or meeting anybody unfriendly."

"You're sure we'll be okay, using Honeydukes I mean?" Ron asked. "Won't going around the crowd under the invisibility cloak prove a problem? We'll be banging into people left and right."

"I guess we'll just have to rely on luck and hope that Hogwarts doesn't have a Hogsmeade trip today." Harry said, grabbing some floo powder in his hand and passing the bowl to Ron.

"Sounds like our whole plan is luck. Hoping to land in an unpopular store, praying our feet aren't seen, and crossing our fingers Hogwarts isn't there today." Draco said after taking his powder.

"Welcome to my world." Harry said getting ready to throw his powder into the flames. "See you guys on the other side." Harry threw his powder into the flames yelling: "Hogsmeade!" Ron followed a couple seconds later, and then Draco. They ended up inside of an old deserted book store by the looks of it. Exchanging looks of relief, the three boys all piled under Harry's cloak, bending low to the ground so that their feet stayed covered for the most part. Opening the door to the book store slowly, the walked out into the street that was nearly as deserted as the book store had been.

"Where do you suppose everybody is?" Ron asked, glancing around at the shops that would normally be packed with people.

Neither Draco nor Harry answered him, instead they all just continued on their way, each taking their own guess to why the streets were so empty and praying they were wrong. They made their way into Honeydukes, which didn't have a substantial amount of people, but still enough to keep the business moving. The boys made their way around the crowd by sticking to the sides of the stores, then heading through the back door and into the basement. Throwing the invisibility cloak off of themselves, Harry made his way over towards the tiles that lifted up and used his wand to remove them.

Ron climbed in first, followed by Draco, and then Harry, who levitated the stones back over the hole. They all lit their wands then traveled down the dark hallway. "That was easy." Ron said with a hopeful smile.

"We're not there yet Weasley."

"Oh come of it. Do you actually think that there will be deatheaters inside Hogwarts? Dumbledore still runs the place, you know." Ron argued.

"I know." Draco snapped. "But the school still needed a new defense against the dark arts teacher and with Voldemort basically controlling the Ministry, it wouldn't be hard for him to get one of his deatheaters in there as a teacher."

"Yeah, but-"

"Shut up. We're almost there." Harry said, spotting light coming from the floor of the tunnel. Throwing the invisibility cloak over themselves again, they pushed through the door and made their way out into the hallway.

They slowly made their way towards the headmaster's tower, trying to not make as much noise as possible. As they rounded the corner, the stone gargoyle appeared and Harry pointed at it with a smile, but stopped suddenly at the three people who came flying out of an empty classroom. Snape had come out first, followed closely by another man and a woman, both of whom looked similar. They were walking quickly and arguing with Snape intensely. Harry, Ron, or Draco didn't hear anything of what they said, but Draco had recognized the man and woman. "Alecto and Amycus Carrow, deatheaters. It just proves what I said earlier."

"We'll worry about that later. Come on." Harry whispered back, walking quickly but quietly towards the gargoyle. Harry bit his lower lip, trying to think of what Dumbledore would find humorous to make as his password. "Pumpkin juice? Ginger snaps? Acid pops? Butter-" Harry stopped making his ridiculous guesses when the gargoyle sprung to life and jumped to the side, allowing the three of them to make their way up the spiral staircase and finally get some answers.

"Good guess." Ron said with a smile as they descended up the stairs.

Reaching the door to Dumbledore's office, Harry rapped on the door three times, still keeping the invisibility cloak over them just in case. After a couple seconds of waiting, the door opened and a smiling Dumbledore looked directly at them, even though he couldn't see them. "I had a feeling you would be returning Harry."

Harry pulled the cloak off all three of them and stared at Dumbledore with wonder. "How did you know it was us?" Harry asked, following Dumbledore inside his office.

"Harry, my boy, when you are as old as I am, you learn when to expect things and who to expect them from."

"So you knew we were coming all along?" Ron asked.

"I had a feeling you would come for help." Dumbledore said taking a seat at his desk and pointing to the unoccupied ones across from himself. Harry, Ron, and Draco all took a seat, Harry fidgeting with the horcrux in his pocket, Ron looking around the room mesmerized, and Draco opening up Hermione's copy of Hogwarts a History and flipping through the pages. "So, what can I help you with?"

"We found a horcrux sir, and we know how to destroy it thanks to a tip from an unknown source, but we can't figure out where anymore would be. You destroyed the ring already sir and the diary was destroyed years ago, and we have the Slytherin locket." Harry stated, pulling out the locket from his pocket and placing it on the table for Dumbledore to see. "We just can't figure out anymore."

"This locket is indeed Slytherin's and is indeed a horcrux. Might I ask, how you knew this was one of them?"

"Draco, sir." Harry said nodding at Draco who was now putting all his attention on the book. "He got a tip off from his mother. She said that all the Hogwarts houses, except Gryffindor, have one and then Nagini as well."

Dumbledore smiling brightly at the group before him and was about to open his mouth to say something, but Draco yelled, catching them all off guard and making them jump in the air. "Merlin's beard, I think I've found them!" Draco yelled excitedly, pointing at the book laying in his lap.

"What?!" Harry and Ron yelled at the same time, both standing up and rounding Draco's chair to look at the book.

"It says right here that each of the houses had their own little piece of treasure of sorts. Gryffindor had his sword, Slytherin his locket, Ravenclaw a diadem, and Hufflepuff a cup. Make sense right?" Draco asked with a smile, looking between Harry, Ron, and Dumbledore, who had a priceless smile on his face.

"If the lockets one then it makes sense for them to be one as well, right?" Harry asked, turning towards Dumbledore.

"Nobody should ever lose faith in the three of you, because you will save us all."

* * *

_Yay! So they finally figured out all the horcruxes and now they have Dumbledore's help. What could go wrong? Hmm... i wonder?_

_So please please please review guys. im begging you from the bottom of my heart. this has been really lacking in reviews and its depressing to look in my email and not see any. and i know... my chapters have been short and pretty boring lately, but i just gave you guys some action and some major info. _

_Guesses as to what their next move is going to be? How about Hermione? How's she doing over in Malfoy Manor and does she have a plan?_


	57. fifty seven: what needs to be done

_Last Chapter: "It says right here that each of the houses had their own little piece of treasure of sorts. Gryffindor had his sword, Slytherin his locket, Ravenclaw a diadem, and Hufflepuff a cup. Make sense right?" Draco asked with a smile, looking between Harry, Ron, and Dumbledore, who had a priceless smile on his face._

_"If the lockets one then it makes sense for them to be one as well, right?" Harry asked, turning towards Dumbledore._

_"Nobody should ever lose faith in the three of you, because you will save us all."_

* * *

_A/N: This chapter is dedicated to raihana175- for sticking with this story and reviewing since the very first chapter, always giving me ideas and helping me with my writers block, and being the backbone to this story! Thanks!!!!!!_

* * *

Harry, Ron, and Draco all watched Dumbledore closely as he stood up slowly and made his way over towards the bookshelf, pulling an old tattered and beat up looking book from the top shelf. Smiling brightly at the boys, he made his way back over towards the desk and placed the book face down, placing both of his hands on the table. It was then that the boys noticed Dumbledore's blackened, and almost dead looking, hand. Harry already knew why his hand was this way, but Ron and Draco had no clue. "Sir, will your hand really not get any better?" Harry asked, not taking his eyes off Dumbledores hand.

"'Fraid not Harry." Dumbledore said with a smile. "Now, tell me, have any of you heard of the deathly hallows?" He asked, exchanging glances from the three boys.

"The Peverell brothers?" Ron asked.

"That's just a story told to entertain children." Draco added.

"Quite correct." Dumbledore said.

"Who are the Peverell brothers?" Harry asked.

"Three brothers who cheated their way out of death." Draco said simply.

"Oh, but it's so much more than that." Dumbledore said seriously. "The tale of the Deathly Hallows is about three brothers who cheated their way out death, just like Mr. Malfoy here said, but there is much more to the tale then just that. The three brothers were traveling at twilight when they came upon a river that would be to dangerous to cross. Being wizards, they simply conjured up a bridge and used that to cross the river. Once across, they came face to face with Death himself, who congratulated them on being able to cheat their way out of death, even though he was rather displeased of losing three new victims. However, death decided to give them a reward for making it across the lake, giving them each the choice of one powerful, magical item.

"Antioch Peverell, the first brother, wanted to be able to become invincible in duels, thus Death reach for a nearby tree, broke one of the branches off, and wielded the elder wand, a wand more powerful than any in existence. The second brother, Cadmus Peverell, wanted to resurrect his lost loves. Death simply reached into the river bank and created the resurrection stone, a stone capable of bringing the dead back into our living world. The third and final brother, Ignotus Peverell, realized that Death might have a trick up his sleeve, so requested an object that would allow him to hide from Death. Death simply took the cloak of his back and made it into a cloak of invisibility. Together, the elder wand, the resurrection stone, and the cloak of invisibility make up the three deathly hallows."

"But what happened to the brothers, sir?" Harry asked. "Did Death really have a trick up his sleeve?"

"Yes, Death is a clever one. Antioch, having boasted about his powerful wand to everybody, was approached in his sleep one night and murdered, so that the killer could take the elder wand for himself. Cadmus, the owner of the resurrection stone, traveled back home and used the stone to bring his true love back to life. He, however, was disappointed when she was truly not the same person. Coming to the conclusion that the dead truly did not belong with the living, Cadmus killed himself, wanting to rejoin his love in the only place they could be together.

"The third brother, Ignotus, as I mentioned earlier, was a smart wizard. He stayed under his cloak of invisibility until he was of old age. Finally reaching the time when he was ready to face death, he took off the invisibility cloak and passed it onto his son. He then proceeded to walk willingly with death into the next world." Dumbledore stopped for only a second, inhaling a deep breath before continuing. "This tale was told as, for better of a word, a fairy tale. However, I believe it goes much further than this."

"You think it's true, sir?" Harry asked, now on the edge of his seat.

"I believe the deathly hallows are indeed true, but the story behind it is what I believe to be false. Things were added into the story that I believe were not true, only put there to make the story more fascinating in the eyes of a child. No, I believe the Peverell brothers were just extremely gifted, and dangerous, wizards who happened to create these objects themselves, rather than receive them from death."

"Sorry, but what does this have to do with horcruxes?" Draco asked impatiently. "I thought we were supposed to destroy them?"

"You are my boy." Dumbledore said with yet another wide smile. "However, the deathly hallows has everything to do with defeating Voldemort as well. You see, the person who is in possession of all three deathly hallows becomes the master of death." Dumbledore said slowly, glancing over at Harry. "In order for you to defeat Voldemort, Harry, I believe you will have to become this master of death."

"So now, on top of destroying horcruxes, we have to find the deathly hallows?" Harry asked Dumbledore like he was crazy.

"How in the bloody hell are we going to do that?" Ron said, not believing the words himself.

"We don't have time for this!" Draco yelled standing up. "Hermione is probably laying in a cell right now, cold and hungry, trying to stay alive and not become too defeated by Voldemort and the deatheaters. If we wait any longer, she and Rosie could die!"

"Relax, Mr. Malfoy." Dumbledore said calmly, pointing to Draco's seat. "Please, sit down and allow me to explain." Once everybody had calmed down, Dumbledore continued on in a very serious tone. "I don't think the three of you realize how close you are to getting the horcruxes and having the deathly hallows in your grasps. The horcruxes, is simple enough to say, but won't however be that easy to get to. You already have the locket, meaning the only horcruxes you have left to find are the diadem of Ravenclaw, Hufflepuff's cup, Nagini, and the part of Voldemort's soul inside of you, Harry, and Rose.

"The answer for you and Rose will all come in time, I believe. Nagini will come when Voldemort comes, especially once Voldemort starts to realize that his horcruxes as being destroyed. I can tell you that the diadem is in fact in Hogwarts, and the cup was last in the possession of Voldemort, so my guess would be he would want it somewhere safe, somewhere that nobody can touch it."

"There's no safer place then Hogwarts." Harry stated. "Could he have hidden them both here in the school?"

"No, I believe not. Voldemort wouldn't want to place two of his most precious items in the same place. Doing so would make them too easy to find and give make the seekers job that much easier."

"How about Gringotts?" Ron asked, getting a smile from Dumbledore. "Isn't that where the sorcerer's stone was hidden until it was moved to Hogwarts?"

"Yes, but Voldemort wouldn't have a vault at Hogwarts." Harry said, biting his lip.

"Well then maybe he asked somebody else to do it for him? One of his death eaters maybe?" Ron argued.

"Who would he trust with one of horcruxes? I mean, seriously. Would you put part of your soul into somebody else's hands?"

"He put it in Draco's dads hands four years ago." Ron said, pointing to Draco. "His diary, remember?"

"Of course I remember. But because he did that, it got destroyed. Would he risk that again? Wasn't Lucius one of his most trusted deatheaters?"

"Yeah, my dad was." Draco exclaimed, finally coming into the conversation. "But he trusted somebody else to."

"Who?" Harry and Ron both asked at the same time.

"My aunt Bellatrix."

Silence filled the room for a few minutes until Harry finally spoke. "Are you sure?"

"Positive." Draco said simply. "That's the only place that it would make sense for Voldemort to hide it in."

"How in the bloody hell are we going to get into Bellatrix's vault?" Ron asked, now frustrated.

"I might be able to. I am family and all." Draco said nodding his head.

"Will that work?"

"It's worth a shot."

"Okay, fine." Harry said standing up and pacing the room. "But where could the diadem be? Where would you hide something like that? Think about all the people who probably searched for that cup. It did belong to Hufflepuff after all."

"Maybe he just happened upon a room and hid it in there." Ron said casually, studying his finger nails.

"People don't just happen upon rooms and-" Harry stopped mid-sentence, having realized that Ron had just guessed correctly without even trying. Harry glanced at Draco and Ron, who were now staring at him curiously. "We happened upon a room when we needed one most. We needed a place to practice our spells and we came upon the room of requirement."

"Do you think Voldemort found it as well?" Ron asked, now putting his full attention on the information Harry just gave out.

Harry nodded as it thought it through one more time. "Yeah. Yeah, I'm sure."

"You do realize how long this is going to take, don't you?" Draco asked, pulling Harry and Ron out of their dream like state that they were close to defeating Voldemort and back into reality. "We now have to go to Gringotts, somehow figure out what Voldemort was thinking that led him into the room where he hid the diadem, _and_ get into the chamber of secrets."

"We'll split up then." Harry said simply. "Malfoy, you can go to Gringotts and try and get into Bellatrix's vault. Ron, since you can't speak parsaltongue, you'll have to go find the diadem in the Room of Requirement, and I'll go into the Chamber of Secrets and get the basilisk teeth."

"Easier said than done." Draco murmured under his breath.

"It's not going to be easy, but it has to be done. And the faster we get it done, the faster we can save Hermione and Rose from the manor." Harry said back to Draco. "We should go now. The sooner we leave, the better."

"Before you leave," Dumbledore said, causing all of them to jump, having forgotten that he was even in the room with them. "There is still the subject of the Hallows we have to discuss." All three boys now gave Dumbledore their full attention, Harry taking a seat back down in his chair. "The third hallow, the cloak of invisibility, I believe you already have in your possession, Harry. Having taken a look and studying it myself, I have come to conclude that it is much better than any invisibility cloak I have ever seen. Like other cloaks, it does not wear or tear, or has it lost any of its power over the many years it's been used.

"The resurrection stone is also in our possession. We happened to come upon this by chance. The stone inside of the Gaunt's ring, turns out to be the resurrection stone, having previously belonged in their line of the family." Dumbledore slowly reached into his pocket and pulled out the ring, placing it on the table for all to see, the stone in the middle sticking out perfectly.

"And what of the wand, sir?" Harry asked.

"The elder wand is a curious thing. It has been passed on from owner to owner through murder. I was, if you can call it this, lucky enough to come upon the person holding the elder wand, and duel him to the death for it, securing myself the elder wand."

"Well that's great! Now we can defeat Voldemort for sure!" Harry said with a big smile, excited that they had all three deathly hallows, Dumbledore, however, shook his head sadly. "No?"

"You are 'the chosen one', Harry. The prophecy states that in order for you to continue living, Voldemort has to die, and vice versa. The only way for him to die, is to become the master of death. You now have the cloak and the stone, the only remaining one to get in your possession is the wand."

"But you have it, sir."

"Exactly, Harry. I must ask you to do something, something that you will find most difficult. It will, however, need to be done if you wish to ever defeat Voldemort."

"What is it sir?" Harry asked slowly.

"In order for you to receive the elder wand and the powers it possesses, you must take the life of the current owner. When the time is right, Harry, you must kill me."

* * *

Sorry for the cliffy. You know i love to leave you guys hanging and pressing for more ;)

Okay, lots of stuff happened in this chapter and i'm sure a bunch of your questions were answered as well. Remember, if you still have any questions at all, please dont be afraid to ask. I always answer back!

And review please please please! I love to hear what you guys are thinking!


	58. fifty eight: Draco breaks in

_Last Chapter: "Exactly, Harry. I must ask you to do something, something that you will find most difficult. It will, however, need to be done if you wish to ever defeat Voldemort."_

_"What is it sir?" Harry asked slowly._

_"In order for you to receive the elder wand and the powers it possesses, you must take the life of the current owner. When the time is right, Harry, you must kill me."_

* * *

"You're insane!" Harry yelled, almost falling out of his seat but catching himself before he hit the ground.

"I know how this sounds-." Dumbledore stared, trying to keep the mood in the room calm, but was interrupted by Ron.

"Everybody in the wizarding world looks up to you."

"And you're the only wizard Voldemort ever feared. Who will he fear if you're dead?" Harry asked, standing up from seat and staring down at Dumbledore who was still perched in his seat behind his desk, a small smile plastered on his face.

"He will fear you, Harry."

"I'm not doing this." Harry stated, determined to make himself clear that he wasn't about to take a life, especially Dumbledore's.

"We don't have a choice."

"Yes we do, and I already made it. I'm not killing you, Professor. Isn't there another way? Isn't there something else we can do? Why can't you just give me the wand? Won't it recognize that you gave it to me willingly?"

"I'm afraid not Harry. The current owner of the wand must be conquered by the other wizard. This is the only way."

Harry ran his hand through his hair and licked his lips. He could almost feel tears coming to his eyes at the fact that the only way to kill Voldemort would be to take the elder wand, and to take the elder wand, he would have to kill Dumbledore, his mentor and his guardian throughout all his years at school and technically, his life. "W-well-"

"Harry." Dumbledore said kindly, noticing the tears forming in Harry's green eyes. "Do you remember what I told you on the night we got the locket from the cave that turned out to be a fake? I asked you to trust me Harry and to do what I asked. Do you remember?" Harry nodded slowly, hearing Dumbledore's words clear in his head. "I'm asking you to do this now, Harry. It's either my life, or hundreds of innocent lives and yours."

"I-I can't… kill you, Professor." Harry said, tears now rolling down his eyes. "It's too hard."

"Nobody said it would be easy, and I'm sorry. I'm sorry for making you have to do this, Harry. But there is… no other way." Dumbledore stated, a little to calmly for somebody who was sentencing themselves to their own death.

"W-When? When do I have to… do it?"

"Harry you can't be serious?" Ron said, shocked.

"No way, Potter!" Draco yelled, the same time as Ron spoke.

"Do you have any bloody ideas then?" Harry snapped, turning his head to look at Ron and Draco sitting behind him. "I don't have a choice." Harry said, turning back and looking at Dumbledore. "Do I have to do it now? Because I don't think I can do it right away."

"No, I don't think so." Dumbledore said with a smile, turning and looking at Fawkes who was sleeping cozily on his perch. "I think right now, the three of you need to go and finishing destroying Horcruxes. Mr. Malfoy, you can use my fireplace to reach Diagon Alley. I'll open up the floo network for you, close it, and then open it an hour later so you can return. Will that give you enough time?"

"I hope so sir." Draco said standing up and checking to make sure he had his wand on him.

"Very good." Dumbledore said, waving his wand carelessly in his hand and then pointing Draco in the direction of his fireplace. Draco grabbed some floo powder from above the fireplace and then stepped in, clearly saying Diagon Alley. Once he was gone, Dumbledore turned to Ron and Harry. "Now, the two of you should travel together, at least until you reach your destinations. Travel under the invisibility cloak so that'll way you'll be safe from wandering eyes. Go to the room of requirement first, then Harry you must proceed to the Chamber of Secrets."

Harry and Ron nodded, then headed for the door, but stopped when Dumbledore stopped them again. "Oh, and Harry, do be careful. Don't let the Carrows see you, for if they do, I fear we will have Voldemort at the gates of Hogwarts in no time at all."

Harry nodded, then throwing the cloak over himself and Ron, they walked out of the door and into the moonlight that shone into Hogwarts.

---------------

Draco walked down the deserted streets of Diagon Alley with his hands in his pocket and his head low to the ground, hoping that he wouldn't run into anybody who recognized him. Thinking that his platinum blonde hair would give him away, he quickly through his hood over his head and then proceeded to the main street in Diagon Alley, heading for Gringotts.

Reaching the front doors of the bank, he glanced up at the sign posted to the side of the doors, the sign that warned any thieves that more than a cell in Azkaban was waiting for them. Draco licked his lips as he thought about what would lay ahead for him if he was caught. Surely, he wouldn't be sent to Azkaban. Voldemort had everything at his power now, and if Draco was caught, he would be in his grasps in a second. At least if he was, he would be with Hermione and his daughter.

Shaking the thought of being caught from his head, Draco reached for the door handle with his sweaty palms and pushed the door open. Hermione had told him that he needed to fight, to destroy horcruxes, and not get caught or come after her, and that was what he was going to do.

He walked down the long hallway that led to the front desk of Gringotts, getting some strange looks from the Goblins who sat to the side, counting and writing down numbers. Draco put on his best Malfoy glare possible, causing some of them to raise their eyebrows at him, but turn their heads back to their work none the less.

Draco smirked at how they reacted towards him, and decided that acting like a bully would work well for him in this situation, especially since he was planning on entering into his aunt Bellatrix's vault without her permission or even a key. Hopefully the Malfoy name would come in handy here.

Draco stopped walking when he approached the front desk, clearing his throat so they goblin knew he was standing there. Placing his quill down slowly and narrowing his eyes at Draco, the goblin folded his hands on the desk and spoke to Draco. "How can I help you?"

"My names Draco Malfoy and I was sent here by Bellatrix Lestrange. I'm sure you're familiar with that name?" Draco said in the cockiest voice he could muster. The goblin merely nodded. "She had asked me to go into her vault and retrieve something of value to her. She is… unable to come herself at the present time."

"We were not made aware of this, Mr. Malfoy." The goblin said, flipping through the papers on his desk.

"She is family, my aunt. I wasn't aware that you would have to be informed. This isn't the first time I have traveled to her vault."

"Whether it is or not, we cannot let you into any vault without authorization from the owner of the vault itself." The goblin said, looking Draco up and down.

"Aren't goblins supposed to be intelligent creatures?" Draco asked, leaning in closer to the goblin. "I was always told that goblins were intelligent."

"We goblins are very intelligent, unlike your human kind." The goblin stated defensively.

Ignoring the goblins last comment, Draco continued. "Then tell me how your pathetic excuse for a brain can't remember the simple fact that I'm her family and that I have been to the vault in question before. Obviously if she had brought me with her before, then she wouldn't have a problem with me going into it again." The goblin stared at Draco, looking pissed by the insult he was given by Draco, but stunned and unsure of what to say. "Perhaps I should leave? Maybe I can come back with my aunt Bellatrix and we'll bring some… friends along with us. I'm sure we can sort this whole thing out then."

Draco turned his back on the goblin, praying to god that he wouldn't actually have to do what he said he would do, and that the goblin would take his threat seriously and just allow him to pass. When Draco walked the first steps, he stopped, hearing the goblin call his name. Turning around, Draco glared at the goblin. "Perhaps… seeing as you're family, we can allow you to pass. There will be no need to get your aunt involved, sir."

"Excellent." Draco said, his insides bursting with joy at the fact that he had actually pulled it off. Draco watched as the goblin rung the bell nearest him, only to be approached by anther goblin few seconds later.

"Take Mr. Malfoy here down to the Lestrange vault." The head goblin said, handing the other goblin a key.

Draco and the goblin traveled down in one of the Gringotts carts, flying by and seeming to go further and further underground. Draco, having already been to his aunt's vault, new that it was one of the farthest vaults, and was ready for the long trip.

Once they arrived at the vault, Draco followed the goblin out of the cart and watched as he slowly and cautiously opened Bellatrix's vault. Once the door was open, Draco stepped inside. Glancing around, he knew it was going to be hard to locate the gold cup among all the other gold jewelry and coins. After several minutes, Draco finally located it. It was on one of the highest shelves, and Draco cursed under his breath, wondering how he was going to be able to reach it.

Stepping up on a shelf below the cup, Draco stuck out his hand and reached for it, but suddenly felt a burning sensation in his foot and had to jump off the shelf quickly in pain. It was then he noticed that what he had accidently touched and had burned him had also exploded and made copies of itself. Cursing under his breath again, Draco turned to the elf who was staring at him with an eyebrow raised. Draco glared at him and then turned back, now noticing the burn hole in his shoe.

It was then it hit him. He remembered his aunts words perfectly now. _"The Gemino and Flagrante curse is a wonderful thing. Causes the object to multiply and burn the victim. The perfect thing you would want to use for something you don't want to get stolen."_ Draco exhaled. _Okay, so great! _Draco thought to himself sarcastically. He couldn't touch anything in the room without looking like an utter idiot in front of the goblin and an obvious thief.

Pulling out his wand, Draco levitated the cup from the shelf and brought it down to his level. Reaching down, Draco grabbed the end of his cloak and brought it up, wrapping it around his hand. Grabbing the cup through his robe, Draco quickly wrapped it up and carried it out in front of him, extremely thankful that it wasn't burning or multiplying. Turning back to the goblin, he nodded, then stepped out of the door.

The goblin looked at Draco suspiciously, then closed the door and locked it back up. They headed back up towards the entrance to Gringotts and Draco couldn't help but congratulate himself on a job well done, he however, started too early.

They reached the top floor and Draco promptly exited the cart, not bothering to thank the goblin. He pushed his way through the door, and with his head down, started making his way towards the exit, when he suddenly ran into somebody. He fell on his butt and dropped the cup as well, watching as it came loose from his robe. Standing up quickly, Draco grabbed the cup and wrapped it back in his cloak. "Why don't you watch where you're…." Draco froze upon recognizing the voice, and turned slowly to face the man he had run into. Dolohov stood before him, eyes wide as he recognized that he had run into none other than. "You!" Dolohov yelled surprise.

Draco gulped as the surprised look on Dolohov's face turned to pure joy. As he reached out for Draco, Draco reached into his pocket and pulled out his wand. Working with quick reflexes, Draco sent Dolohov flying into a wall and made a quick dash for it. Running out into the main road of Diagon Alley, Draco could hear people running after him and Dolohov yelling for him to shop. Draco dove down the first street he could, taking as many detours as possible, hoping to lose the people chasing him. Taking the first opportunity that came to him, Draco ran into one of the shops, ran over to the fireplace, grabbed the floo powder, and yelled: "Dumbledore's office!" before disappearing from Diagon Alley and back into the safety of Hogwarts, horcrux held tightly under his robes.

* * *

_Hey guys! _

_I hope you liked the chapter and sorry for the kinda long wait for it. I haven't been in the writing mood lately. Sad... i know. Just thought i would let you guys know that this story is going to be coming to a close within a few more chapters, but not without some more action and drama filled scenes (of course). And don't forget, there's always the sequel!_

_Speaking of the sequel, i have some good news. Thanks to one of my marvelous readers (raihana175) i have the summary all ready for you guys and a title. _

_The title is going to be: A Rose is a Rose._

_And since i like you guys so much... i'm going to give you the summary as well: The war is fought and over. The wizarding world is rejoicing. But what will they do when Rose, daughter of war heroes Draco and Hermione, is pronounced a squib. Most importantly, what will Draco, a prestigious pureblood from birth, do?_

_Remember to review guys! I would love to hear what you think of the sequel, and of course this chapter!!!!_


	59. fifty nine: helping from the shadows

_Last Chapter: Draco gulped as the surprised look on Dolohov's face turned to pure joy. As he reached out for Draco, Draco reached into his pocket and pulled out his wand. Working with quick reflexes, Draco sent Dolohov flying into a wall and made a quick dash for it. Running out into the main road of Diagon Alley, Draco could hear people running after him and Dolohov yelling for him to shop. Draco dove down the first street he could, taking as many detours as possible, hoping to lose the people chasing him. Taking the first opportunity that came to him, Draco ran into one of the shops, ran over to the fireplace, grabbed the floo powder, and yelled: "Dumbledore's office!" before disappearing from Diagon Alley and back into the safety of Hogwarts, horcrux held tightly under his robes._

* * *

It took only a matter of hours for Hermione to realize that the minimum number of week Narcissa had spent locked up were slowly making her crazy. She would often catch the woman talking to herself, murmuring things about how foolish her son was, how she was going to die in the cell, or how she would never live to see the day when the wizarding world was free from Voldemort. Hermione even heard her, on the cold nights when the darkness seemed to haunt the inhabitants of the cell, talking to Lucius. Of course, she wasn't actually talking to her deceased husband, but Hermione figured that with her loss of sanity and her broken heart, that Narcissa could actually see her husband, even if only for a few minutes.

And although Hermione knew she should walk her way through the darkness until she came upon the woman, she couldn't. She told herself it was because she knew the woman would push her away, but Hermione knew deep down that that wasn't the truth. Hermione was jealous. She wanted nothing more then to lose her sanity herself just so she could spend a few minutes with Draco. She would never lose her sanity, however. She had too much faith that she would somehow escape her prison to see the people she loved and she had to Rose. She _had_ to protect her daughter.

ON whatever she guessed was her third day in the cell, Hermione awoke to a high pitched scream coming from the room above. When it came again, by force of habit, Hermione tightened the grip on her daughter and pulled her closer towards her chest. Bellatrix's insane scream ran through her ears ever since she took Rosie from her after she gave birth.

As the scream came for what she hoped was the last time, she heard somebody else yelling, and then name they he spoke grabbed Hermione's attention. "It was that Malfoy boy. He came running out with some gold cup under his cloak."

"Why didn't you stop him, you idiot! Are you a wizard or not!" Bellatrix screamed.

"Yes, but so is he in case you forgot!" The man yelled back.

"I can't believe you couldn't catch a 16 year old! A 16 year old who now has something that the Dark Lord asked me to place in my vault for him!"

"You mean that cup belonged to the Dark Lord?" The man asked, his voice now slightly quieter and sounding frightened.

"Yes you IDIOT!" Bellatrix screamed as Hermione heard a crash coming from the room the man and Bellatrix were in, and then… silence. Hermione's heart raced in her chest as the wheels in her head turned. They were talking about Draco. He had gone into Bellatrix's vault and had taken something, a gold cup. A gold cup that Voldemort had asked Bellatrix to place inside her vault. Hermione tried to not show her happiness as she put the two pieces together. If Draco had broken into his aunts vault to get something, something that Voldemort had wanted in there, Hermione would bet it was a horcrux. And if it was a horcrux, that that meant that they were one step closer to defeating Voldemort.

Hermione racked her brain, trying to think of where the boys would have gone next. They would probably want to get some help, meaning they would go to the one person Harry looked up to most. Dumbledore.

Hermione ran a hand through her hair, wishing there was some way she could help the boys instead of just sitting in the cell and being completely useless. She knew they didn't expect any help from her, but she had to try.

"Stupid house elves." Narcissa murmured under her breath, picking up a piece of bread from the plate they were given for breakfast that morning, and throwing it back onto the dirt floor. It hit the ground with a thud and Hermione watched it roll across the ground as what Narcissa had said hit her like a ton of bricks.

"House elves!" Hermione yelled, but not loud enough for anybody out of the cell to hear her. Narcissa shot Hermione a look of confusion and Hermione smiled at her, slowly standing up and approaching Narcissa with Rosie in her arms. "Narcissa, do the house elves still have to come when you call them? You're still their mistress right?" Narcissa just stared back at Hermione, trying to figure out why Hermione was worried so much about house elves. "Narcissa please! I need to know so I can help Harry."

"You can't help him." Narcissa said, turning her head and looking out towards the cell door. "He's good as dead."

"No, he's not." Hermione snapped, but Narcissa just kept looking ahead, not bothering to pay Hermione any attention. Hermione exhaled and used the only weapon she could use against Narcissa… her son. "If you're not going to do this for Harry, then do this for Draco." Narcissa looked back at Hermione when she mentioned her sons name. "Draco is out there fighting right now, and I need to help him. Didn't you hear what Bellatrix was just screaming about?"

"How could I not?" Narcissa said quietly.

"Then help me, please. Help me so I can help them destroy horcruxes. Call a house elf."

Narcissa looked at Hermione questionably before exhaling a deep breath and then glancing up at the ceiling. "Sminky!" Narcissa yelled in a soft whisper.

With a pop, a small, fragile looking house elf appeared in front of them. Hermione smiled at the house elf and turned to it slowly. "H-Hello."

"Sminky isn't allowed to talk to prisoners. Sminky must leave."

"No, wait!" Hermione yelled before the house elf could apparate on the spot. "I need your help. Do you remember Dobby? He used to work here at this manor." Hermione spoke quickly, hoping to get everything out before the elf could turn and leave.

"Yes, I remember Dobby." The elf said, his full attention on Hermione.

"He works at Hogwarts now, in the kitchens. Would you be able to find him for me and… give him a message."

"Sminky isn't supposed to help prisoners. Sminky could get in trouble for helping them." The elf said more to herself then to Hermione.

"Please." Hermione said biting her lip in frustration. "Just find him. Tell him to find Ginny Weasley and to tell her to get the D.A. ready. Have him tell her that Harry Potter is in Hogwarts and needs their help" The elf stared at Hermione, unsure, but then, to Hermione's amazement, nodded and disappeared with a pop.

Satisfied with herself, Hermione said back down on the ground and smiled down at Rosie. She ran a hand through her daughters hair and Rosie looked up at her, until her eyes finally started to close and before long, Rosie was lost in a deep sleep. Hermione could only smile at her daughter, wishing to be as worry free as her.

"What are you smiling at?"

Hermione's smile instantly dropped as she looked up into the eyes of none other then Bellatrix Lestrange. Even though Hermione's heart was racing from the woman standing in front of her, her Gryffindor courage took over. She lightly placed her sleeping daughter on the sheet that laid on the ground and slowly stood up, taking a couple steps towards the woman.

Hermione clenched her fist together and placed them at her side, trying to calm her breath but not being very successful as Bellatrix opened the cell door and walked inside. Hermione couldn't help but notice that Narcissa seemed to tense when Bellatrix entered the room, and Hermione couldn't help but feel sorry for the woman. You shouldn't be afraid of your sister… not like that.

But for that split second when Hermione's attention wasn't on Bellatrix, Bellatrix attacked her. With a flick of her wrist, Hermione was thrown back against the wall, spinning in the air a couple times before making contact, and falling to the ground. It took Hermione a couple of seconds to hear her wrist cracking and for the pain to shoot up her arm, letting her know that she had landed on her hand while trying to catch herself falling to the ground. With her body weight, she had forced her wrist to bend it the way no wrist should bend. Hermione screamed as the pain shot through her, and Bellatrix only laughed at her.

Hermione buried her head in the dirt, biting her lip to stop herself from screaming and wishing the pain would go away. It was like the cruciatus curse, only worse because the pain wouldn't stop. Just when the pain seemed to be wearing off, it shot back through her body as Hermione felt a hand grab her by her broken wrist and lifted her up off the ground.

Hermione screamed even louder than before as Bellatrix dragged her out of the dungeon and up the stairs to one of the large sitting rooms in the manor. Hermione was thrown onto the ground and sat up quickly, holding her wrist and biting her lips together to hold back the scream she wanted to let out from the pain in her wrist. She looked around the room to see that her and Bellatrix weren't alone. Avery stood with his arms crossed, glancing down at Hermione with somewhat of a pout on his face, Dolohov stood against the wall, his hands in his pocket and a nice sized bump on his forehead, Greyback stood on the side of Avery, his hands folded behind his back and looking at Hermione with a sort of hunger in his eyes, and Jugson and Macnair stood either side of Bellatrix, forming a sort of circle around Hermione.

"All right, mudblood." Bellatrix said, taking a step closer towards Hermione. "Tell me how your little boyfriend got into my vault."

"Husband." Hermione said through her teeth, glaring up at Bellatrix. "Draco is my husband."

Hermione felt a strong force hit her in the jaw, sending her flying backwards holding her jaw in pain. Sitting back up, Hermione glanced over at Bellatrix and realized that Bellatrix had just kicked her. Spitting out the blood in her mouth, Hermione glared back up at Bellatrix, pretending to be unfazed by the assault. "How did he get into my vault mudblood!"

"How am I supposed to know!?" Hermione yelled back. "I've been in here! You've had me locked away, remember?"

"Then where are they now?" Bellatrix asked, pressing on, trying to get anything from Hermione.

"Even if I knew…," Hermione said, smirking up at Bellatrix, a smirk worthy of a Malfoy. "I wouldn't tell you."

Bellatrix let out a little laugh and then leaned in closer towards Hermione. "You do know, you foolish little mudblood, and you are going to tell us." Hermione didn't respond, instead just stared back up at the woman with hatred. Bellatrix laughed again before standing up properly and turning towards Avery. "Get the child. If she won't talk… then we'll make her talk." The grin from Hermione's disappeared instantly.

* * *

_Sorry for the short chapter guys. This is actually only half the lengh i wanted to make this chapter but i was just really excited to give you guys some news._

_So... for those of you who live close to NJ and are in love with Tom Felton as much as i am... i have AMAZING NEWS!! Tom Felton is making an appearance in Paramus NJ at the hot topic in the mall on friday, July 10th. All you have to do is go and buy the 25 dollar Draco Malfoy t shirt and you get a wrist band that guarantees you'll meet him. Just go to hot topics main webpage and theres more details there, but if you're going to go... better hurry. They only have a certain amount of wrist bands and they're going fast._

_if you are going... i'll see you there! I'll be the one at the front of the line jumping up and down with excitement :)_

_oh yeah... review please!_


	60. sixty: time was up

_Last Chapter: Bellatrix let out a little laugh and then leaned in closer towards Hermione. "You do know, you foolish little mudblood, and you are going to tell us." Hermione didn't respond, instead just stared back up at the woman with hatred. Bellatrix laughed again before standing up properly and turning towards Avery. "Get the child. If she won't talk… then we'll make her talk." The grin from Hermione's face disappeared instantly._

* * *

It wasn't hard for Harry to get back into the Chamber of Secrets and retrieve a basilisk fang. He was in and out quicker than he ever thought possible, the safety of his friends pressing him on. He closed the chamber up and shoved the fang inside his robe. He was about to throw on his invisibility cloak when he spotted something that made him stop in his tracks. "Dobby?" Before him stood the house elf he favored above all others. "Dobby, what are you doing here?"

"Dobby was sent to help Harry Potter." He smiled.

"You were sent? By who? Dumbledore?"

"Dobby was sent by a house elf Dobby knew before he was set free. She told Dobby to find the D.A. and ask them to help."

"Hang on…. Before you were freed? You mean to tell me a house elf from Malfoy Manor told you to help us?"

"Yes Harry Potter." Dobby smiled and nodded his head. Harry couldn't help as his own smile spread from one ear to the next and he couldn't help the laugh that erupted from his throat as one face came to his mind. Hermione. She must have figured they were at Hogwarts and decided to help in the only way she could … house elves. He had to admire her brilliance sometimes. "Dobby did as he was told, Harry Potter."

"What?" Harry asked, now zoning back in and no longer admiring Hermione's brilliance, at least for a little while. She wasn't the brightest witch of her age for nothing.

"Dobby has found young misses Weasley."

"Ginny?" Harry asked quickly, his heart doing a flip at the sound of her name.

"She is finding others, Harry Potter. Others to help fight!"

"Shh, Dobby not so loud." Harry said putting a finger in front of his lips to show Dobby his seriousness. "When did you talk to her last?"

"Not long ago. Dobby found her and then came to find Harry Potter."

"Excellent. Dobby, I need to find the Diadem of Ravenclaw. It's in the Room of Requirement but that's all we really know about it. Do you know anything?"

"Dobby is sorry, but no. Dobby knows what it looks like though. Maybe Dobby can help Harry Potter find it."

"Great. Come on Dobby. We need to find this thing fast!" And in an instant Harry disappeared under his invisibility cloak and ran at a full sprint towards the Room of Requirement, Dobby trailing right behind him.

--------------

Ron bit his lips nervously as he glanced around at the room before him. The ceiling was so high up it made the room look like a cathedral. Shelves lined the walls, random collecting and artifacts scattered all around them. The floor was covered in dust and old rugs, larger objects that couldn't fit on the shelves were thrown into piles. This place was nothing but a room of lost, misplaced, or unwanted things from past or current students. Finding the Diadem would be like finding a needle in a hay stack.

Ron whined in the back of his throat when he realized this was merely impossible. Taking out his wand, he held it high in the air and yelled what he already knew wouldn't work.

"Accio Diadem!"

Nothing happened.

"I can't believe you tried that." Ron spun around, a huge smile spread on his face. Before him stood Ginny, her arms crossed and smiling at Ron. Behind her stood Neville, Luna, Dean, Seamus, and even Cho Chang, all with wands ready and determined looks on their faces.

"How did you-?"

"Dobby." Ginny said simply. "He found me saying a house elf from Malfoy Manor told him to get the D.A. ready. I got all I could find and owled everybody else who graduated." Ginny stated, nodding her head towards the people standing behind her. "Dobby went to find Harry. Are we going to fight?"

"Did you say Malfoy Manor?" Ron asked. Ginny nodded in reply and Ron's smile grew as he let out a little laugh and shook his head, muttering Hermione's name under his breath.

"Are we fighting, though?" Ginny asked again.

"I have a feeling we won't have to wait long for a battle, but we need to destroy the horcruxes first."

"Horcruxes?" Dean asked, obviously never hearing of them before.

"A part of somebody's soul placed into an object. In this case, it's You-Know-Who's. He can't die unless we destroy all of his horcruxes, and one of them is in here."

"What is it?" Ginny asked.

"Ravenclaws Diadem. As you saw, summoning it won't work, so we have to find it without the help of magic."

"Obviously." Ginny said under her breath, gaining a glare from Ron.

"Maybe we should split up." Neville suggested shyly. "We could find it faster that way."

"Good idea Neville." Luna complimented, causing Neville's cheeks to turn a dark shade of pink as he muttered a small thank you.

"Does everybody know what it looks like, then?" Ron asked. Neville, Ginny, Seamus, and Dean all shook their heads but Cho Chang and Luna nodded. "How-?"

"There's a statue of Ravenclaw in our common room and she's wearing it." Luna said simply, looking directly at Ron.

"Okay, we'll go in groups of two then. Luna and Neville, Seamus and Cho, and Dean and me." Ron nodded his head as he spoke.

Ginny cleared her throat. "Am I a lone ranger or something? Who's going with me?"

"I will." Everybody turned around and looked into the green eyes of Harry Potter. Ginny smiled and instantly blushed at the sight of Harry volunteering to be with her. Harry smiled at her before looking at the other people in the group. "This is brilliant." Harry shook his head and his smile grew as he looked at Ron. "Bloody hell, I love Hermione."

"Just keep your hands of Potter. She's married now, remember?" Harry and Ron grinned as the smirking blond entered the room and stood next to Dobby. Dobby looked up fearfully at one of his old masters, but Draco smiled kindly down at him. "Get the Diadem yet?" Draco asked Ron.

"No. Get the cup?" Ron asked back.

Draco reached into his cloak and pulled out the gold cup of Hufflepuff. "Wasn't easy… but I got it. And we better hurry and destroy these." Draco said to Harry, holding the cup up a little higher. "I was spotted. It's only a matter of time before Voldemort finds out that we're actually succeeding."

Horror spread across Harry's face at this news. "Let's split up now! We need to find this fast!" Harry grabbed Ginny's hand and tore off to the right, everybody else following his lead only heading in separate directions.

They searched for what felt like hours, nobody with any success. Harry ran a hand through his hair, frustration getting to him. He spun in circles, frantically trying to locate the Diadem. "Harry…." Ginny said calmly, placing a hand on his shoulder to try and calm him down. "Harry… maybe it's not here."

"It has to be!" Harry yelled, sweat appearing on his forehead. "There's nowhere else!" Harry pushed Ginny's hand off and ran towards the nearest shelf, bending low and searching in the pile that lay on the ground before him. He would grab an item, examine it, and then toss it behind him. When he had looked over every item and found nothing the frustration overtook him even more and he stood up, throwing his hands, balled up into a fist, against the shelf. The force from his fist hitting it caused the shelf to tip backwards, fall over, and spill all its contents on the floor.

"Harry!" Ginny yelled, shocked and surprised at his over reacting, but her yelling didn't matter.

They both saw it at the same time.

Sticking out of the pile of fallen artifacts was clearly the top points of a crown. The Diadem. Harry reached for it slowly, feeling the cold gold beneath his finger tips. He raised it up so he could have a better view. Ginny came up behind him, resting her hand on his shoulder and peering over it. "Is that it?" She asked quietly.

Harry studied it carefully before a small smile spread across his face. "You bet it is."

Harry looked over at Ginny, who was still peering over his shoulder, and smiled. She smiled back a couple seconds later and before Harry knew what he was doing… he kissed her. They locked lips for what felt like hours before they broke apart. Harry grabbed her hand and pulled her towards the main entrance. "Come on Gin'! We almost have them all! It's almost over!" When they reached the front, Harry couldn't help the excitement that was released from inside him. "WE FOUND IT! Everybody come on, we found it!"

Lifting his wand up into the air, Harry shot red sparks from the tip of his wand and before long, everybody was by the entrance to the Room of Requirement, forming a circle around a table that Ron drug over for them to place the horcruxes on. Harry laid the Locket, the Diadem, and the Cup down on the table and licked his lips, reaching into his cloak and pulling out the fang.

They all stared at the horcruxes, each watching but nobody actually doing anything. "This is it." Harry said quietly. "We're so close…."

"Do it Harry." Neville said in a whisper.

Harry licked his lips again as he approached the horcruxes. He placed the fang in his right hand and gripped it tightly, lowering it towards the cup. He inhaled a deep breath and went to stab the cup, but froze as he brought the fang back some to strike. "What's wrong?" Dean asked.

"I-I can't." Harry said, taking his eyes off the horcruxes and looking at his friends before him.

"You… can't?" Ron asked. "We spent all this time searching these things down and now you can't destroy it?!"

"It doesn't feel right." Harry stated simply. He glanced down at the horcruxes again and then at the fang in his hand. He exhaled a long breath before holding the fang out towards Draco. "You got the cup, you destroy it."

"Me?" Draco asked, pointing to himself. Harry nodded and Draco approached him slowly. Harry handed him the fang and then stepped back into the spot Draco just occupied. Draco re-gripped the fang, having grabbed it too far down and accidentally getting some venom on the palm of his hand, but ignoring it all the same. With all eyes on him, Draco approached the cup, licking his lips nervously. He inhaled a deep breath and then glanced at the group. They were all looking at the cup now, anxious and waiting. Draco turned back and held his breath. In one quick motion, he brought the fang down and stabbed the cup. The gold surrounding the fangs sizzled and seemed to melt away, but not before letting out a scream of agony and pain.

Draco continued to drag the fang through the melting cup until it was cut in two. Pulling the fang away from it, Draco breathed again. He stepped back from the table and handed Harry the fang, never removing his eyes from the no longer shining horcrux. "The Diadem." Harry said simply, studying the group before him.

"You found it Harry." Ginny said quietly. "You should destroy it."

"No. It can't be me. I don't know why… but it can't. Luna should do it. She is a Ravenclaw after all."

"So is Cho." Dean reminded Harry.

"It's okay." Cho said simply. "Luna can do it."

Luna nodded and then cautiously approached the horcrux. She looked it over before licking her lips, counting down from three, and then brought the fang down on the crown. The crown reacted the same way, only instead of losing its shine, the gems and diamonds lining the top of it fell off and turned to dust upon hitting the ground.

Luna placed the fang back the table and stepped back. "Hermione got the locket." Ron stated.

"But you and Draco found it. She only recovered it." Harry said. "I think the two of you need to destroy it."

"I destroyed the cup." Draco said, almost whinning.

"I have a feeling the locket will be different. Voldemort probably put a lot of care into this horcrux, with it being Slytherins and all. I think this one will be different. We might need two people to destroy it."

"What exactly do you mean by different, Harry?" Ron asked nervously.

"It'll fight back." Harry said quietly, watching Ron and Draco pale. "I think Ron should do it.

"Bloody hell!"

"I'm serious. Ron can stab it and Draco can hold it."

"Why do I get the rebellious horcrux?" Ron whined, throwing his head back in the air and following Draco. Draco held the locket in front of him, holding each side with the tips of his fingers. Ron picked up the fang and went to quickly stab it and get it over with, but Harry stopped him.

"I think we should open it."

"'Open it'?" Draco repeated. "Why?"

Harry shrugged. "Just a hunch."

Draco re-gripped the Locket in his hands and then turned to Ron. "Ready?"

"No, but just do it." Draco closed his eyes tightly together and turned his head to the side, unclipping the locket and letting it fall open. Although nobody could hear the Locket, it was obvious that it was doing something. Ron looked at it fearfully, his chest rising and falling rapidly.

"Do it now Ron!" Harry yelled. Ron shook his head, clearing what the horcrux was saying to him, and brought the fang down on it. The locket screamed and cried out and then... silence. The only noise that could be heard was the sound of the fang hitting the ground as Ron dropped it.

A couple minutes later, Cho finally spoke. "Is that it? Was that all of them?"

"No." Harry said quietly, looking over at Draco who was studying the ground, his thoughts obviously on Hermione and Rosie. Them destroying the horcruxes before them only meant that they were running out of time to figure out how to save Rosie. Voldemort was right about one thing: Harry couldn't kill Rose. "There's three more. Nagini, Voldemort's snake, me,… and Rose."

"Rose?" Seamus asked confused.

"Yeah." Draco said, still studying the ground. "My daughter."

The happiness of the destruction of the Locket, Cup, and Diadem was put out like a flame to water at Draco's words. Destroying the Locket, Cup, and Diadem would be a walk in the park compared to keeping Rosie and Harry alive while destroying the horcruxes inside of them. And nobody was ready to take that challenge on, but they had no choice. Time was up.

* * *

_I AM SOOOOOOOO SORRY! It has never ever ever ever taken me so long to update a chapter! I had the worst writers block EVER and the fact that i had an amazing month didn't help me update any faster._

_ I have gone to see Half Blood Prince about six times so far in the theature and i have decided that i actually do like it. I was kind of unsure at first, but once i stopped concentrating on how different it was from the book and how much they messed it up, i liked it (especially the felix part lmao). What did you guys think?_

_I also met Tom Felton!!! He's AMAZING and only made my love for Draco grow stronger! He's also about a million times cuter in person. He's just not photogenic. I told him i liked his music (because its totally cute) and he was so shocked. He told me he appreciated that and then took back the poster he autrographed and wrote **Love** Tom Felton versus just Tom Felton. I freaked out with excitement and stared jumping up and down and balling my eyes out in the middle of the crowded mall. Pretty sure i was one of the only people who got love writen on their poster. _

_So, enough of me talking about Tom. Just wanted to appologize again and let you guys know that i have no work tomorrow, so i am planning on locking myself in my room and writing as much of this story as i can. Thanks for being patient!_


	61. sixty one: happy to be selfish

_Last Chapter: The happiness of the destruction of the Locket, Cup, and Diadem was put out like a flame to water at Draco's words. Destroying the Locket, Cup, and Diadem would be a walk in the park compared to keeping Rosie and Harry alive while destroying the horcruxes inside of them. And nobody was ready to take that challenge on, but they had no choice. Time was up._

* * *

Hermione's chest rose and fell quickly as she watched Bellatrix pace back and forth, twirling her wand through her hair and glancing up at the ceiling. It only took a couple of minutes for Avery to come back into the room, carrying a crying Rose in his arms. Hermione jumped up instantly, running towards her daughter. Bellatrix just laughed at her, flicking her wand and sending Hermione flying back towards the ground. "Get off her!" Hermione yelled, standing up again, only to be thrown back down.

"Where's Potter, Mudblood?" Bellatrix asked.

"I! Don't! KNOW!" Hermione screamed, desperate to not give away Harry's position or cause any harm to her daughter at the same time.

"Really?" Bellatrix smirked at Hermione then turned to Avery and held her hand out for Avery to hand Rose over. "Maybe your daughter will know?" Bellatrix said, glancing down at the crying infant in her arms.

"Please…." Hermione begged, tears rolling down her cheeks. "She has nothing to do with this. Please don't hurt my daughter."

"I won't." Bellatrix said simply. "As long as you tell me how Mr. Malfoy broke into my vault at Gringotts and stole one of my belongings."

"I already told you I don't know! How am I supposed to know! I've been locked in this house for days, starved and tortured! I've had no contact with the outside world, so how in the bloody hell am I supposed to know!?"

Bellatrix's smirk broke and she brought her wand tip to Rosie. "I'm done playing games Mudblood." Bellatrix said through her teeth. "Tell me why the Malfoy boy stole something from my vault or else I send the cruciatus curse through her body!" When Hermione didn't answer, Bellatrix lived up to her promise, sending the curse through Rosie. Rosie screamed and whaled in pain, causing Hermione to react like any mother would. She jumped up and charged after Bellatrix, but Bellatrix only laughed at her and threw her back using her wand, causing the curse to be released from Rosie.

The doors behind Bellatrix suddenly opened and a deatheater Hermione had never seen before came in. He approached Bellatrix quickly and then whispered something at her, never taking his eyes from Hermione.

Bellatrix looked back over at Hermione, a scared yet anxious look on her face. She tossed Rosie back to Avery and then approached Hermione, grabbing a chunk of her hair. "Get your filthy hands off me!" Hermione yelled, trying to fight Bellatrix off her.

"The Dark Lord wants to see us, mudblood. I think we'll take you and the overgrown fetus with us. You can be the one to deliver the information about the robbery to him, seeing as it was one of your people who took it." She said laughing, dragging Hermione out the door and down the hall.

"You're a scared little-"

"Don't insult _me_ Mudblood!" Bellatrix yanked Hermione's hair harder.

"It wasn't an insult!" Hermione yelled, fighting through the feeling of her hair being ripped from her scalp and the throbbing headache she was getting because of it. "I was just stating the truth! You're so scared that he'll hurt _you_ for _your_ mistakes that you're bringing me as a shield!"

"My mistakes?" Bellatrix asked, coming to a halt and glancing down at Hermione. "Your boyfriend made the mistake by breaking into my vault." She said, now dragging Hermione down the hall again. "He's the reason for your torture."

"He's my husband!"

Bellatrix laughed. "Like that actually makes a difference right now. He's still the reason you and your stupid Order are going to lose this battle."

"We might lose the battle, although I doubt it, but we _will_, without a doubt, win the war." Hermione said rather calmly, smirking up at Bellatrix.

Bellatrix glared down at Hermione after coming to a stop. In one quick motion, Bellatrix used all her strength and through Hermione in front of a door, then proceeded towards it. She reached for the handle and pushed it open, then stepped over Hermione and into the room, making sure to step on Hermione's broken wrist on her way in. Hermione shrieked in pain, even as she felt Bellatrix grab her hair again and drag her into the room.

Hermione watched as Bellatrix bowed to Voldemort, sitting at the head of a table full of deatheaters. "What is _that_ doing here?" Voldemort asked, referring to Hermione.

"She has something to tell you, My Lord." Bellatrix said slowly, tossing Hermione forward. "Tell him." She ordered through her teeth.

Hermione stayed lying on the ground, propped up on her elbow and glancing around the room, keeping her eyes on her daughter for a few seconds longer than anything else before turning to face Voldemort. "You're going to lose." Hermione said quietly, smirking slightly. "You're defenses are falling around you and your precious 'friends' are too scared to tell you because you ruled with fear rather than love.

"Not to mention the fact that you're also to blind to see. You're so positive that you're going to win this that you can't even tell when you're clearly losing." Voldemort watched Hermione, an expressionless look on his face. "You turned Rose into a horcrux, but did you actually think that would stop Harry from getting to the others? Did you actually think that all Harry had was me and Ron, and by destroying just the two of us and the people we loved that you could actually stop him?" Hermione shook her head and laughed slightly at Voldemorts stupidity.

Voldemorts rage builded up as Hermione continued, her anger and determination pushing her forward like a current to a boat. "I would actually like to thank you for a couple of things. First, I want to thank you for making your deatheaters so scared of you that when it comes time for a battle, they'll be so afraid to lose and disappoint you, so nervous that they'll fail you, that they finally will. And when they do fail you, you'll lose for sure. And when you do lose, I'll make sure all of you lot are locked away in a cell in Azkaban, all awaiting your death. All because you took orders from a hypocrite!" Hermione licked her dry lips, only getting started. "You're taking orders from a half blood! His father was a bloody muggle!"

"Enough." Voldemort said rather calmly, but Hermione continued.

"How many muggles have you all killed? How many _innocent_ muggles have you killed? How many of you actually enjoyed kill them? You all can't be as heartless as this son of a bitch!"

"That's enough Mudblood." Voldemort said again, this time much louder.

Hermione stood up, ignoring Voldemort yet again. "He's a monster and he's turning all of you into one!"

"Enough!" Voldemort yelled loudly, now pointing his wand at Hermione.

"NO!" She yelled back, determined. "You can curse me all you wand but it won't stop me in the end!" Hermione turned back to the deatheaters, talking quickly before she was cursed. "You all can say you're as heart less as he is, and some of you might be," Hermione glared at Bellatrix. "But I _know_ that _all_ of really aren't. You all can't be. And I know this because I married somebody just like you." Hermione held out her left hand, displaying her ring finger and the band she proudly wore on it.

The whole room got quiet and Hermione turned to Voldemort. "And that was the last thing I needed to thank you for. Thank you for being such a selfish bastard. Because if you weren't, and actually thought of something other than keeping yourself alive, I wouldn't have fallen in love with Draco, I wouldn't have a beautiful daughter, Harry wouldn't have the help of Draco and a new friend for life, your deatheaters wouldn't' be taking my words into consideration right now, and…" Hermione smirked fully at Voldemort. "Draco wouldn't have broken in Bellatrix's vault at Gringotts and stole one of your precious horcruxes."

Voldemort practically, it at all possible, paled at Hermione's words. "Aren't you happy you're such a selfish bastard?" Hermione asked, the sarcasm just rolling right off her. "Because I know I am."

Hermione watched a rage filled Voldemort stand up, but she didn't see anything else, because the next second later Voldemort casted a spell at her, sending her flying back into the wall and knocking her completely unconscious.

* * *

_Hello again! Sorry the chapter was so short but i wrote it and decided to just post it since i went almost a month without updating. Figured i at least owed you guys that. I'm hoping the writers block is over (crosses fingers) and i should have this story completed in a couple days if not tomorrow._

_LOVE Hermiones speech! Let me know what you guys think : )_


	62. sixty two: finally free

_Last Chapter: Hermione watched a rage filled Voldemort stand up, but she didn't see anything else, because the next second later Voldemort casted a spell at her, sending her flying back into the wall and knocking her completely unconscious._

* * *

Harry led the group out of the Room of Requirement quietly, sticking close to the shadows. Their destination was Dumbledore's office. With the destroyed horcruxes and the fang in their hands, they made their way with caution, everybody determined to reach it safely.

"How much farther, Harry?" Neville asked in a whisper.

"Not too far. We're almost-"Harry froze, throwing his hand up to stop everybody else. Harry could hear his heart beat through his ears at the sight before him. They had just turned a corner and before them stood none other than the Carrow twins.

"Well, well, well, look what we caught. Little students out of bed and-." Alecto stopped mid sentence. It was obvious she had just recognized Harry, Ron, and Draco for the first time. "P-Potter?" She stuttered.

Harry gulped as Alecto approached him, and then he did the only thing he could do. Defended himself from being discovered. "Expelliarmus!" He yelled, casting the spell at Alecto but missing by inches.

Both Carrow twins fled as fast as they could down the nearest hall, but not before shouting: "It is him, it's Potter! Quick, we must inform the Dark Lord!"

Harry quickly turned to the people standing behind him, everybody with a worried expression on their faces. "We need to get to Dumbledore." Harry said to Ron and Draco. "Voldemort will be here soon and he'll want to get as many innocent people out of the castle as he can." Harry then turned to Ginny. "Can you get in contact with the other D.A. members?"

"Already have." She said with a re-assuring smile.

"Good. I need all of you to go to your common rooms. If there's any place that they'll go, it'll be there. Wait for them there and then one of us will come and get you when its time." Everybody nodded and then ran in the direction of their house. Ginny, Dean, Seamus, and Neville running towards Gryffindor and Luna and Cho heading towards Ravenclaw. "Come on." Harry said, turning toward Ron and Draco and then running at a full sprint towards Dumbledore's office.

They raced up the spiral staircase and ran right into the room, not even bothering to knock. Dumbledore looked up at them with a smile, then stood up and ushered for them to come forward towards his desk. They obliged and tossed the destroyed horcruxes down on his desk. "He knows." Harry said while trying to catch his breath. "Voldemort knows we're here."

Dumbledore's proud smile quickly turned to seriousness as he raced towards the picture frames lining the wall closest to the pensieve. "Go to the teachers offices and warn them that we are about to be under attack. Tell them to get to my office as soon as possible." The man in the painting nodded and rushed off. Dumbledore then turned back to Harry, Ron, and Draco. "How does he know you're here?"

"Carrows." Draco said simply.

Dumbledore nodded. "We don't have much time. I would like to get as many students out of the castle as possible, but I fear we might not have enough time for that. If the Carrows have sent for Voldemort then we have about half an hour until Voldemort arrives. We can lock down the school, but that won't help for long."

"How about a secret passage?" Draco asked.

"I'm sorry?" Dumbledore asked.

"There are plenty of secret passages leading out of Hogwarts and into Hogsmeade. Why don't you use them to get the students out?" Draco finished.

Dumbledore smiled at Draco. "Brilliant idea Mr. Malfoy." The next instant, the door bursted open and Professor McGonagall, Professor Sprout, Professor Snape, and Professor Flitwick all stood before them. When they noticed Harry standing in front of them, they all seemed to realize what was going on. "Voldemort is coming." Dumbledore said simply. "You all should know the secret passages to get out of the school. Go to your house common room and wake all the students then lead them to one of the passage ways out of the castle. But you must hurry, we don't have much time."

"What about those who want to help fight?" Harry asked, remembering Neville, Ginny, Seamus, and Dean who had been a big help and would want to help finish what they started.

"Only older students. Sixteen is where I draw my line." Dumbledore said nodding to the teachers and dismissing them. Once the teachers had left the room, Dumbledore turned to Harry, Ron, and Draco. "It's about to get dangerous and you have to be ready. This is where it's going to get scary."

Harry just smiled and shook his head. "No Professor. This is where it's going to end."

---------------

Hermione groaned as she opened her eyes. Her head was throbbing along with her broken wrist. She sat up quickly when she remembered what had happened and frantically searched the room for Rosie. She exhaled a deep breath when she saw Narcissa sitting in the corner with Rosie in her lap. Hermione stood up and approached the fragile woman, then held out her arms for her daughter. Narcissa handed her over and Hermione smiled down at her baby. Rosie was about the only thing that could make her smile these days. As she rocked her back and forth, Hermione noticed that the manor seemed to be quieter than usual.

She looked up at the ceiling with curiosity, wondering what could have possible happened to cause the silence in the manor. "They all left." Hermione turned her head and looked at Narcissa curiously.

"What do you mean 'they all left'?" Hermione asked.

"To fight." Narcissa said, looking down at the ground between her legs.

Hermione finally understood. Voldemort must have somehow figured out that Harry, Ron, and Draco were at Hogwarts and decided to stop them before they could get any further with destroying his horcruxes. "I have to get out of here." Hermione said, looking around the room, hoping to maybe find a way out that she didn't see earlier. "I have to help them."

"You can't escape this place. Not only are those bars keeping you here, but so is magic. Don't waste your energy." Narcissa spat.

"At least I haven't given up hope." Hermione spat back, causing Narcissa to look at Hermione with hatred.

"You're a foolish girl. You can't escape this place! It's stupid for you to even think that! Just like it's foolish for you to think that Potter is actually going to be able to stop Voldemort."

"I can't believe you actually still support him." Hermione said shaking her head. "After everything he's done to you and your family, you still want him to win this war."

"Of course I don't want him to win. And I don't blame him for what has happened to me or my family."

Hermione laughed. "Then who do you blame?"

"You."

Hermione shook her head and turned her back on the woman. "You're crazy."

"It's true! If you didn't fall in love with my son-"

"There is no way you can blame this on me!" Hermione yelled, cutting off Narcissa. "If it wasn't for Voldemort then I wouldn't have fallen in love with Draco! It's his entire fault! But you know what, I don't really care that he did this to me, as long as me, Draco, and Rosie come out of this alive. Because of what happened, I now have the love of my life and a daughter to come along with him."

"You and Draco will never be happy together." Narcissa said quietly.

"Yes we will." Hermione snapped back, gaining a glare from Narcissa.

"What's up with all the yelling?" Hermione turned to find Avery looking at her through the bars. "You're disturbing the few of us that are left in this house."

Hermione charged at the bars of the cell. "Let me out of here right now!" She yelled in his face. "I need to get out of here and help them!"

"Relax."

"Don't tell me to relax! How am I supposed to relax when all my friends are out there fighting for their lives and I can't even be there to help them! What kind of monster-"

"That is why I am here."

"You-." Hermione stopped mid-sentence, staring down the man before her, shock and confusion etched on her face. "What?" Avery smiled at Hermione and then pointed his wand at the lock of her cell, muttering a spell, and then pulling the cell door open. "W-What are you doing?"

Avery exhaled a deep breath. "You said not to long ago that all of us in that room couldn't possibly be as much of a monster as Voldemort." Avery smiled and nodded his head. "I'm not a monster. I didn't enjoy killing those people, and I can't believe it took me this long to realize. It took you telling everybody for me to realize it, and I wanted to thank you. This is my way of thanking you." Avery reached into his pocket and pulled Hermione's wand, her wand that was taken from her when she was captured over the summer, out. He handed it to Hermione and she took it slowly, watching him carefully the entire time.

"This is for real?" She asked, thinking it was too good to be true.

"It's for real." He said nodding his head again. "You said you wanted to go to Hogwarts and help fight, so you should. They're going to need you."

Hermione smiled at Avery and before she knew what she was doing, she jumped at him and wrapped her arms around him in a big hug. Avery was caught off guard, but eventually wrapped his arms around her as well. "Thank you so much." Hermione said once she released the hug. "You have no idea how much this means to me. I don't know how I'll ever repay you."

Avery laughed. "Just don't lock me up in Azkaban and let me await my death like you promised us earlier."

Hermione laughed. "I promise." Avery nodded and reached into another pocket of his cloak and pulled out some floo powder.

"The defenses around Hogwarts were broken a few minutes ago by the Death Eaters. You'll be able to get in using this." Hermione smiled and nodded, took the powder from his hand, and then sprinted out of the dungeon, up the staircase, into the entrance hall of Malfoy Manor, and towards the fireplace.

She through the powder inside and shouted; "HOGWARTS!" as loud and as clearly as she could. She was finally free.

* * *

_Aww Avery is nice! What did you guys think? _

_So i sat down for an hour this morning and i figured out the rest of this story. It will have a grand total of 68 chapters including the little epilogue i'm going to throw in there. But for those of you who just started reading this or those of you who needed a reminder, there will be a sequel which i am DYING to write. its going to be great, trust me! it'll be called A Rose is a Rose. It would prob be best to add me to your author alert so that'll way you know when i start it. Just an idea :)_

_Also, i started a new story about a week ago. It's called A Promise Kept and it's about what would have happened if Draco accepted Dumbledores offer up in the Astronomy tower to allow The Order to hide him and his family. Go check it out! :)_

_and remember to review please!_


	63. sixty three: let's end this

_Last Chapter: "The defenses around Hogwarts were broken a few minutes ago by the Death Eaters. You'll be able to get in using this." Hermione smiled and nodded, took the powder from his hand, and then sprinted out of the dungeon, up the staircase, into the entrance hall of Malfoy Manor, and towards the fireplace._

_She through the powder inside and shouted; "HOGWARTS!" as loud and as clearly as she could. She was finally free._

* * *

The Death Eaters broke inside the grounds of Hogwarts within minutes. With all the younger students out, everybody else retreated to the Great Hall, all waiting for a battle that was sure to come. All that stood between them now was the walls of Hogwarts. Harry, Ron, and Draco entered the Great Hall after Dumbledore. Dumbledore found his way towards the teachers table while Harry, Ron, and Draco made their way towards the Gryffindor table. Draco couldn't help but notice that the only table that was completely empty was Slytherin.

It was astonishing the number of people who had stayed to fight. Every member of the D.A. was there, along with The Order. But that wasn't all. Other students, even younger ones who should have left but decided to sneak into the Great Hall were there. Harry couldn't help but smile at them all, and yet somehow it made it nervous. All of these people stayed to fight because they believed a victory would come out of this. Everything was in his hands now.

Dumbledore stepped up to his podium and put his hands in the air to silence the room. Everybody died down instantly, all eyes and ears on the Headmaster. "We don't know how long it'll take for them to break in, but it will happen. They are strong because they are driven by hatred." Dumbledore said pointing towards the door that led out of the Great Hall. "That is what gives them their strength and that will be the only reason they will get into this castle tonight. We, however, are not driven by hatred, but by a few other things. Love, compassion, friendship, and a reason. They don't fight for any of these things. They don't know love, they don't have friends, and they don't feel compassion for anybody because it's not built into them like it's built into all of you sitting before me. They also don't have a reason. We have a reason to fight, and that drives us to do amazing things. We go out there and we fight, and we'll win. We'll win because unlike them… we have something to fight for."

Everybody cheered at Dumbledore's words, everybody ready to fight. "Keep your friends close at heart, but don't say your goodbyes, not yet. You all are far from saying goodbye to the ones you love!" The crowd cheered again and Dumbledore smiled down at all of his past and current students. "Stay close, watch each other's back and never give up. Now, we fight!" As Dumbledore yelled, the entire castle rumbled and shook. The Death Eaters had broken in somewhere, but that wasn't the only reason for the rumble. The entire Great Hall had jumped up and charged out with their wands raised.

Harry watched as the hall emptied, watching friends and the people he came to know as his family, rushed out. It was then that Harry spotted Ernie Macmillan, and he knew what he had to do. He rushed forward and grabbed him by his shoulder before he could tear out of the hall. "Oh, hello Harry." Ernie said with a smile.

Harry smiled back and reached into his cloak and pulled out the basilisk fang. "Listen Ernie, I need to ask you a favor. I need you to find as many of the D.A. members as you can and then I need you to all go and find Voldemorts snake Nagini. Can you do that?"

"Of course." Ernie said, confused, but taking the fang anyway.

"Once you find her I need you to take this basilisk fang and I need you to stab Nagini with it."

"Stab the snake?!" Ernie asked, taking a step back.

"If you don't kill Nagini with the fang then Voldemort won't die. Do you understand?" Harry finished, looking at Ernie with seriousness, hoping that he would understand just how serious this all was.

Ernie nodded and then took off after some of his fellow Hufflepuff. Harry watched him go and then ran back to Ron and Draco. "What was that about?" Ron asked.

"Ernie is a Hufflepuff. I asked him to kill Nagini." Harry said simply.

"Why Ernie?" Ron asked.

"Why a Hufflepuff?" Draco asked at the same time.

"Ron, you destroyed the Locket, Draco you destroyed the Cup, and Luna destroyed the Diadem. That's a Gryffindor, Slytherin, and a Ravenclaw. If Ernie kills Nagini then somebody from every house will have destroyed a horcrux."

"I still don't get it." Ron said looking at Draco to see if he understood. Draco just shrugged and looked back at Harry.

"House unity." Harry said, looking at his friends like they were mental. "Voldemort would hate the fact that all the Hogwarts houses came together to take him down. It would kill him to know this, and that's all the better for me."

Ron and Draco shook their heads with smiles on their faces. "I don't know where the hell you get these ideas from Potter." Draco said. Harry just smiled back and shrugged his shoulders.

"We better get out there and fight as well." Ron said, looking at the now almost deserted hall.

"Right." Harry said agreeing. "Let's go." Harry led Ron and Draco out of the Great Hall, all with wands raised. "I have to find Voldemort." Harry said as they ran out towards the grounds.

"We'll help." Ron said, Draco nodding behind him.

"We still have to find Nagini. Why don't the two of you go and find Ernie, help him find the snake, and then kill her. Even if I find Voldemort, I won't be able to kill him completely."

Ron and Draco nodded and Harry smiled at them before sprinting off towards a huge crowd of Death Eaters, hoping that Voldemort would be somewhere in there. "Where to now?" Ron asked Draco.

"I don't know let's just-." Draco started but stopped when he noticed Dean and Seamus running right at them, waving their arms in the air to try and get their attention. "What's wrong?"

"Hermione." Dean said, finally reaching them and trying to catch his breath.

"What about Hermione?" Draco asked.

"We saw her. She's here, in the castle." Seamus finished.

Draco's heart did a tumble and he looked at Ron with a huge smile on his face, Ron looking just as relieved as he was. "Was she okay? Did she have a baby with her?"

"She had a baby, but we didn't actually talk to her. We just saw her."

"Where?"

"She was running up the main stairwell." Dean finished.

Draco turned to Ron. "I have to find her. You'll have to find Nagini on your own, I'm sorry." Draco didn't wait for Ron to answer and ran at a full sprint back to the castle, but before he could get far, Ron called back after him.

"MALFOY! Malfoy, wait!" Ron yelled, right on Draco's tail.

"What, Weasley!?" Draco yelled turning back and glaring at Ron.

"I just… I just wanted to say…"

"Spit it out!" Ron didn't answer Draco, instead he just stared right back into Draco's eyes. "I need to find Hermione. I don't have time for this." Draco turned on his heel but before he could get anywhere, Ron finally spoke.

"I'm happy." Draco turned back to face Ron. Ron bit his lip nervously as he looked back at Draco. "I'm happy that it was who Hermione fell in love with. It would have never been me; it never would have worked out. We're like brother and sister for crying out loud! So if it had to be anybody… I'm happy it was you."

Draco smiled at Ron, and then extended his hand. Ron took it, now smiling back, and they shook hands. "Thank you." Draco said kindly, nodding his head at Ron.

Ron rolled his eyes and then dropped Draco's hand. "Oh, don't be going all soft on me now." Ron said with a laugh. "Go find Hermione."

Draco smiled a thank you one more time then made his way back towards the castle. Back to finding Hermione.

-----------------

It didn't take long at all for Ron to find Ernie and the rest of the D.A.. Ron approached them and ran right at Ernie. "Did you find the snake yet?" He asked. Ernie shook his head and Ron cursed under his breath. "You still have the fang, right?"

"Yeah."

"Well then come on. We don't have any time to waist." Ron waved his hand at the small group and they followed Ron and Ernie as they ran through the castle and grounds trying to find Nagini. They searched everywhere they could think of, with no luck. It was as they were coming around from one of the green houses that they heard a girl scream.

"SNAKE!" They all watched as the terrified Ravenclaw sprinted with her arms in the air away from the python slithering in the weeds. Ron and Ernie smiled at each other, and then quickly ran at the snake.

"Pertrificus Totalus!" Ron yelled pointing his wand at the snake. The snake froze instantly and Ron quickly turned to Dean, who had joined them in their search. "Dean, levitate the damn thing so Ernie can kill it!" Dean joined Ron at his side and pointed his wand at the snake, muttering the correct spell and causing Nagini to be lifted from the weeds. Ernie approached it slowly, pulling the fang out from his pocket. "Do it Ernie!" Ron yelled.

Ernie glanced at Ron one more time before driving the fang directly into the snakes head. Blood gushed from the snake and Ron quickly released his body bind spell. The snake's entire body shook, almost like it was having a seizure, for a few seconds until it became totally limp, where it hung like a sock on a clothing line, still attached to Dean's spell.

They all sat and watched the dead snake for a few minutes until Dean finally allowed the snake to fall. Once it hit the ground, Ron turned to the group before him. "Let's end this!" He yelled. They all took off, wands raised and shooting spells at every Death Eater they saw. Little did they know that Harry had watched from afar and was now sprinting through the castle, his will to find Voldemort even stronger with the hope of how close they were.

Harry reached the end of the green houses when he paused for a minute to catch his breath. As he paused, he looked to his right to see Dumbledore smiling at him, small scratches on his face. "Professor…." Harry said, approaching him. "Nagini is dead. I saw them kill her."

"Then all that is left is the horcrux in you and in Rose." Harry nodded. "Have you figured out how to get rid of them yet?" Harry shook his head, watching Dumbledore's smile fade. Dumbledore approached Harry and placed a hand on his shoulder. "Your mother died to save your life. She was willing to die so you could keep on living."

"Right." Harry said nodding. "Her love is what kept me alive."

"Correct." Dumbledore said. "Can your love for your friends keep them alive?"

"Sir?" Harry asked, confused.

"Would you be willing to die if it meant that they could keep on living?"

Harry took a step back finally understanding. "I have to be like my mother. I have to die in order for…."

"In order for the world to be rid of Voldemort, you will have to die Harry. You have to be willing to die. That is the only way that Voldemort can be killed and that your friends can keep on living their lives."

"Why didn't you tell me before?" Harry asked, now studying the ground.

"You weren't ready."

"Am I now?" Harry looked up at Dumbledore.

"Do you love your friends?" Dumbledore asked, looking at Harry with concern.

"Enough to die for them?" Dumbledore nodded his head and Harry licked his lips. "Absolutely."

"Then you're ready." Dumbledore smiled at Harry and patted him on the shoulder. Harry looked up at Dumbledore one more time before taking a step back and running out into the grounds. As he ran up one of the many hills on Hogwarts grounds, he spotted him. Voldemort himself standing at the top of the hill, fighting off about five Aurors. Harry licked his lips one more time as he approached Voldemort. He placed his wand in his pocket when he was about 100 feet from him and closed his eyes. He knew what he had to do. And he was willing to do it. He was willing to die.

* * *

_I hope i didn't screw up the explanation of why Harry had to die to much. I tried to find a different way then the way J.K. did it but i actually like the way she did. I know a lot of people didnt like the ending of DH but i did, so i decided to stick with her brilliant work. _

_Remember to review guys! Only 4 more chapters then the epilogue! Anybody have any idea as to how Rosie isn't going to be a horcrux anymore, if at all? I think you'll like it ; )_


	64. sixty four: the only thing that mattered

_Last Chapter: "Then you're ready." Dumbledore smiled at Harry and patted him on the shoulder. Harry looked up at Dumbledore one more time before taking a step back and running out into the grounds. As he ran up one of the many hills on Hogwarts grounds, he spotted him. Voldemort himself standing at the top of the hill, fighting off about five Aurors. Harry licked his lips one more time as he approached Voldemort. He placed his wand in his pocket when he was about 100 feet from him and closed his eyes. He knew what he had to do. And he was willing to do it. He was willing to die._

* * *

Harry opened his eyes. The hatred towards the monster before him burned him on the inside, yet he didn't show it on the outside. He approached Voldemort, hands clenched at his side, sweat building up in-between them rather than a wand. "Riddle!" Harry yelled when he was standing behind Voldemort, breathing heavily through his nose.

Voldemort turned around quickly and smirked when he saw Harry standing before him. "Ah, Harry. I thought you wouldn't show your face on this fine night."

"I'm surprised you have." Harry snapped back. "I'm surprised you showed up instead of just sending your Death Eaters to finish the job for you."

"Not tonight. Tonight is a special night."

"Oh yeah? Why's that?" Harry asked, glaring at Voldemort.

"Tonight is the night I kill you." Voldemort stated proudly, pointing his wand at Harry.

"And tonight is the night you die." Harry said through his teeth. "So, I guess it's a good night for all of us."

Voldemort laughed. "How do you suppose I'm going to die, if you are already going to be dead?" Harry didn't answer. Harry didn't know the answer. He was just going by what Dumbledore said, and that was that he had to die. Voldemort laughed again when Harry didn't speak. "You're a fool Harry Potter. You're a fool for showing up here completely wandless. You're a fool for thinking that you, a mere boy of 16, could defeat me, the darkest wizard who ever lived. You're a fool for bringing your friends into this, because they are all going to… die."

Harry glared at Voldemort, biting his lips together to stop himself from saying anything back. Voldemort wanted him to respond, and Harry wasn't going to. At the mention of his friends, Harry's eyes seemed to travel to the people fighting all around him. People he loved were fighting for their lives, fighting for the things they all believed in. They were fighting for freedom from prejudice and hatred. Harry couldn't let them down. He had to set them free. And in order to do so, he had to willingly die.

He glanced back at Voldemort, his heart pounding so loudly in his ears he couldn't hear anything going on around him. It was like a bomb had gone off, and all he could do was watch. He watched Voldemort raise his wand, watched him move his lips to perform the most unforgivable curse there is, he watched, almost in slow motion, as the green spell left the tip of Voldemorts wand, and he watched it as he hit him in the chest. Harry fell to the ground, smacking his head on the dirt that covered it.

The last thing he watched was a battle between Lupin and Greyback before his eyes shut and he breathed his last breath of air.

The last thing he thought was of how he couldn't let them down. He had to set them free.

-------------------

It was like magic. Harry smelled anything before he felt it. He could smell the musty scent coming from the woods. He could then feel the cold ground, layered in sticks and rocks that pounded and scraped the back of his neck and head as he was drug. He could feel the hands wrapped around his ankle that pulled him viciously through the woods. And then he could finally hear voices. They seemed to be laughing, almost celebrating, but Harry couldn't see anything. He kept his eyes closed; it was too good to be true.

He breathed in slowly, still unsure as to what was going on. He was positive that he saw Voldemorts curse hit him, so why wasn't he dead? Had Dumbledore been wrong? Had he known something that Harry didn't? Or maybe this kind of magic was something that Dumbledore didn't expect? Harry had never heard of anybody dying and then coming back to life. It was impossible.

As Harry pondered his mind, trying to think of a logical explanation as to why he was still alive, the people dragging him ran his head over a huge rock. Harry, not expecting it, couldn't help the groan that escaped his lips. He regretted it instantly. The people stopped walking and everything got quiet.

"Did you hear that?" One of the men asked.

"Was that Potter?" Another asked. "Somebody go check."

Harry could hear the shuffling off feet and then everything got quiet again. Harry got himself ready, knowing that a set of fingers was going to touch him to check his pulse, and he had to be ready to jump into action. Harry could hear the man breathing as he lowered himself closer to Harry, and that's when Harry decided to act. He realized then that it didn't matter how he was still alive, but the fact that he _was_ still alive.

As he felt the man place his fingers on his neck, Harry brought his hand up quickly and punched the man in the back of the head, at the same time reaching for his wand that still lay inside his pocket. Harry opened his eyes and jumped up from the ground, quickly disarming the Death Eater closest to him before sending the last remaining Death Eater flying against the tree.

The Death Eater that Harry had disarmed quickly tried running for his wand, but Harry was too fast for him. He quickly shot a body-binding curse at the man, causing his body to lock up and fall on his face, hitting a boulder. The man that Harry had punched lay at his feet, and Harry quickly kicked him over onto his back, pointing his wand at him. He threw his arms up in surrender and Harry shook his head at the man. "Pathetic." He said, sending the last Death Eater into a body bind curse as well. "No wonder you're a Death Eater."

Harry gave them all one last look before taking off back in the direction of the castle, back towards Voldemort.

--------------------

The floo powder had dropped Hermione off right in the middle of a battle. She had to dive quickly to safety before she was hit by a spell. She held Rosie tightly against her as she pulled out her wand and made a run for it, catching a few Death Eaters by surprise as she shot spells at them. She made her way up the Grand Staircase and down one of the halls. She shot spell after spell at every threat she saw, but her real destination was to be in Draco's arms. She wanted to find him more than anything, and that was what she was going to do.

She searched for what felt like hours inside the school, and then decided to check the grounds when she had no luck looking inside. She rounded a corner of the school by the whomping willow and ran directly into Ginny, causing her to fall onto her back. They both stood up instantly, not yet realizing who they ran into, but once they did, they embraced each other in a hug. "I'm so happy you're alright." Ginny said with a smile. "We've all been worried sick, especially Draco."

"Have you seen him yet? I've been looking for him." Hermione asked.

"No, sorry Hermione." Hermione bit her lip and looked around nervously. That was when she saw her. Standing about a hundred feet away from them was none other than Bellatrix Lestrange. Hermione gripped her wand tightly as hatred for the woman started to bubble inside her. She glared at Bellatrix one more time before turning to Ginny.

"Can you hold Rosie?" Hermione asked, handing Rose over to Ginny who agreed instantly. "I have something I need to take care of." Hermione clenched her fist at her side as she left Ginny and approached Bellatrix, anger pushing her on. Bellatrix cackled as she cursed one of the younger students who was trying to escape the branches of the whomping willow, not even noticing Hermione quickly approaching her. "You really are the most despicable person I have ever met!" Hermione yelled, causing the witch to turn and face her.

Bellatrix smirked when she saw Hermione approaching her, wands raised. "Well, well, well, I can see somebody was able to escape her cell." Bellatrix said with a laugh. "Don't worry you'll be back there before you know it. The dead bodies of the ones you love rotting before you."

Hermione just laughed. "The only person who will be in a cell will be you. Either in Azkaban or in hell. The choice is yours." Bellatrix sent the killing curse flying at Hermione, but Hermione blocked it easily, sending her own curse flying towards Bellatrix. They continued to battle it out, Hermione's full attention on sending the woman before her, the woman who was her reason for so much torture, to hell in a hand basket, at least it was until she heard a familiar scream.

Hermione glanced over at Ginny just in time to see Ginny being overpowered by a Death Eater. She was knocked unconscious and sent flying in the direction of the whomping willow, stopping only a few feet short of its branches, Rosie falling out of her arms when she hit the ground. "No." Hermione said to herself, her attention half on Rosie and half on Bellatrix.

Bellatrix sent another spell flying at Hermione, but Hermione blocked it just like she always had. Bellatrix, fed up with being over powered by the person she had overpowered for days, decided that enough was enough. She sent one more killing curse flying at Hermione so quickly that Hermione barely had time to block it. She did manage to block it, but the spell however, shot up towards the sky and hit one of the top most towers of the school, shattering the glass and sending it flying towards the ground. Bellatrix screamed in anger and glanced over at Rosie before a smile spread across her face. Hermione's heart took a leap at the look she was giving her daughter. "I might not be able to kill you, mudblood, but I can certainly kill the one you hold closest to your heart."

"No!" Hermione screamed as Bellatrix aimed her wand at Rosie, lying on the ground about a hundred feet from where they stood. Hermione took off at a full sprint, tossing her wand on the ground. The only thing that mattered at that time was saving her daughter's life. Bellatrix casted the killing curse, sending it at Rosie just as Hermione wrapped her arms around her daughter and turned her back on the spell.

It was at that exact moment that Draco came sprinting out of the castle. He froze at the sight he saw. The glass that had shattered from the top most towers hit the ground right in the space between where Hermione kneeled and Bellatrix's spell was, but the glass didn't stop the spell. The spell shone right through the glass, smacking Hermione in the back. "NO!" Draco yelled, running at a full sprint towards Hermione.

* * *

_:0_

_almost done the next one. you guys won't have to wait long to see what happens, promise!_


	65. sixty five: becoming a family

_Last Chapter: It was at that exact moment that Draco came sprinting out of the castle. He froze at the sight he saw. The glass that had shattered from the top most towers hit the ground right in the space between where Hermione kneeled and Bellatrix's spell was, but the glass didn't stop the spell. The spell shone right through the glass, smacking Hermione in the back. "NO!" Draco yelled, running at a full sprint towards Hermione._

* * *

As Draco ran, he watched as Hermione's body fell to the ground, completely limp. He ran over to her and kneeled beside her. He brought her closer to him, resting her body on his legs and holding her head with his hands. "Hermione, wake up." He said, tears building up in his eyes, but he fought them back. "Hermione…." She couldn't be dead, not Hermione.

That was when he heard the laughter. Draco's breath became heavy and his entire body filled with rage. He stood up and glared at his Aunt Bellatrix, bouncing up and down with excitement over the fact that she killed Hermione. "You stupid BITCH!" Draco yelled, storming over towards his aunt with his wands gripped tightly in his hand. "You killed her!"

"I did you a favor boy, stop whining!" Bellatrix yelled, waving her hand at Draco like it was no big deal.

"I loved her and you killed her! She has a daughter! How is a daughter supposed to grow up without her mother?!" At his rage, Draco sent a spell flying at Bellatrix. She blocked it quickly, but was caught by surprise and was forced to take a step back. She glanced at her nephew with surprise. "You took away the love of my life, so now… I'm going to take your life." Draco said through his teeth as he shot another spell at Bellatrix, sending her flying back another step.

"You can't kill Draco." Bellatrix said simply.

Draco shot another spell, this one so powerful that it sent Bellatrix flying in the air about a hundred feet and landing on her back. She sat up and looked at Draco, not noticing that she was sitting in the shadow of the whomping willow. "You're right." Draco said, sadness laced in his voice as he watched the branches of the tree swing down on his aunt. "But that can."

He closed his eyes and allowed the screams of his aunt to hit him for a few seconds until they finally stopped. He opened his eyes and looked down at the broken body of his aunt. A body that no longer carried a heartbeat. Draco licked his lips and turned on his heel, running back towards Hermione, but froze when he reached her, noticing something that caught him completely off guard.

He looked over at Rosie, laying on the ground, her eyes closed, but her chest still moving. She was still breathing, she was still alive. But this wasn't what caught his eye. Rosie was glowing. Around her body seemed to be a silver glow, and Draco watched in astonishment as it seemed to separate itself from Rosie and lift into the air, floating a few feet above her. Draco watched, looking at it with uncertainty, noticing that it looked identical to his daughter, only it looked more like a patronus.

Draco approached the floating silver object cautiously. He studied it carefully, glancing from his daughter, then back to the floating object. He brought the tip of his wand and raised it to the silver object. "What are you?" He whispered to the object, like it was actually going to answer him.

Draco studied it more closely; trying to remember what could have happened that caused this. He licked his lips as he racked his brain about what it could possibly be, and then he thought of the only logical explanation. This was the horcrux inside of Rosie, now no longer inside her. Draco brought his wand back up to it. "Stupefy." Draco said, watching the spell shoot from his wand and travel right through the horcrux. Draco tried a few more, but with no luck.

He brought his hand up to run it through his hair, the frustration over taking him, but froze. With his hand in midair, the tips of his fingers just barely touching his blond locks, he stared at the center of his palm. He had touched the fang of the basilisk earlier, gripping it too far down and accidently getting some venom on his hand. He never wiped it off his hand. He brought his hand back down from his head and looked at it. He licked his lips nervously and then did the only thing he could think of.

He reached his hand out slowly and wrapped it around the silver arm of the horcrux. The horcrux instantly screamed and cried out, causing Draco to lose his grip. He took a step back and watched as the silver horcrux seemed to disappear in front of his very eyes. It thrashed its body around until finally, it went limp, and disappeared with a pop.

Draco exhaled a deep breath of relief, the horcrux was gone. Rosie was no longer a horcrux.

He smiled as he turned to look at his daughter, but the smile didn't last for long. For that split second, he had forgotten about Hermione, but now that he had seen her, all happiness fled from his body. He walked over towards Hermione and slowly kneeled down next to her. He wrapped his arms under her and brought her fragile body on his legs. He ran a hand through her hair as he watched her with hopeful eyes. The tears he held back early, now springing to life. "Hermione…." He whispered, leaning forward and placing a kiss on forehead. "Hermione, please don't be dead." Draco licked his lips then bit them together, trying to fight off the tears that he knew would come.

He closed his eyes as he brought Hermione's body closer to his, squeezing it tightly against his own. "I can't live without you! Please don't be dead!" Draco yelled, now crying hysterically into the crook of Hermione's neck. "Please! Ron needs you, Harry needs you, Rosie needs you…, _I_ need you."

Draco shook his head, looking up at the sky and crying out. He looked back at Hermione and his whole body shook with sadness. "You can't leave me Hermione. You're not supposed to die. You're supposed to be the strong one out of all of us. You're supposed to spend the rest of your life with me. You're-." Draco sniffled, whipping the tears off his face. "You're supposed to be there when Rosie goes to Hogwarts for her first time, remember? We're supposed to have a hundred more kids so we can watch them go off to Hogwarts. We're supposed to watch them grow up, graduate, get jobs, get a family, and then we're supposed to grow old together. We're supposed to die _together_."

Draco shook his head as more tears fell from his face. He looked down at Hermione before pulling her closer to him. "I love you Hermione." Draco said, crying even harder now, soaking her shirt in his tears.

"Stop crying before you damage your ego, Draco." A soft, yet familiar, voice said in his ear.

Draco pulled Hermione tighter against him, crying out even more, but this time for happiness. He rocked her back and forth, trying to control his tears but finding it difficult. He finally released her from his tight grip, but kept her in his arms, and looked down at the love of his life, smiling back at him. "I thought I lost you." Draco said, crashing his lips down on Hermione.

"You can't get rid of me that easily." Hermione said once Draco released the kiss.

"Trust me," Draco said, giving her another hard kiss. "I have no intentions of getting rid of you any time soon." They both smiled into each others eyes, kissing each other like they would never see the person before them ever again. "I'm never letting you out of my sight again."

Hermione smiled up at him and then gave him a quick kiss on the lips. "I love you to." Draco smiled back, letting out a little laugh. They finally took their eyes off each other when they heard a small cry. Hermione glanced down at her daughter and picked her up, holding her tightly in her arms, herself wrapped in Draco's.

"We have no more worries. We can finally be a family."

"What about-?"

"The horcrux?" Draco asked, finishing her sentence for her. "I think you saving Rose's life caused the horcrux to be released from her body. Once it was, I was able to destroy it."

"You mean that Rosie isn't a horcrux anymore?" Hermione asked, a huge smile plastered on her face. Draco shook his head no, giving Hermione a kiss on the top of her head. "Why do you think I didn't die, Draco?" Hermione asked, looking up at him.

Draco thought for a moment and then he suddenly remembered. "The glass." He said quietly. Hermione looked up at him confused. "The shattered glass that fell from the tower. The spell that Bellatrix threw at you shown through the glass before it hit you."

"You think that stopped the curse?"

"It did something." Draco said with a smile. "Thank Merlin, because I couldn't live without you."

Hermione laughed and kissed Draco quickly. "So what's left? What do we have left to destroy?"

"Nothing. Just Harry. Harry and Voldemort." Draco looked at Hermione before standing up. He reached a hand out to help Hermione up as well. "What do you say we help? Let's end the prejudice in this world. Once we do we can live our life in peace, not caring about what a soul in the world thinks about it either." Hermione smiled at Draco and nodded, taking his hand and entwining it tightly in hers before they ran off to find Harry, a horcrux-less Rose held tightly in her right arm.

* * *

_aww, they're so cute! i actually like this chapter and have been looking forward to writing it for a while. what did you guys think?_

_and of course Hermione didnt die sillies!! how could i kill off one of the main characters and one of my favorites! but seriously, who thought she actually did?_

_only two more chapters left, the little epilogue i threw together, and then the sequel! _

_please remember to review guys! it is now 3:53 a.m. and here i am still updating this story! Not to mention you got 6 chapters in about 27 hours. i think i deserve a review, dont you?_


	66. sixty six: everyone else's happy endings

_Last Chapter: "Nothing. Just Harry. Harry and Voldemort." Draco looked at Hermione before standing up. He reached a hand out to help Hermione up as well. "What do you say we help? Let's end the prejudice in this world. Once we do we can live our life in peace, not caring about what a soul in the world thinks about it either." Hermione smiled at Draco and nodded, taking his hand and entwining it tightly in hers before they ran off to find Harry, a horcrux-less Rose held tightly in her right arm._

* * *

Harry was out of breath and could feel his legs turning to jello as he continued to sprint out of the forest. He wanted to collapse onto the ground, but he didn't. He had a job to do. He had to kill Voldemort, and he wasn't going to fail.

He had just survived the killing curse again and he felt invincible.

He wouldn't fail.

Harry saw the forest start to open up and he could hear the sounds of a battle going on. When he reached the edge of the forest, he stopped for a second, taking in the scene before him. He couldn't tell who was winning. So many people were injured, so many people were dead.

Harry inhaled a deep breath and then started sprinting again, this time even faster than before. His destination was again to find Voldemort, only this time, Voldemort wouldn't be walking out of here alive. Harry sprinted towards the castle and stayed in the shadows it casted from the moonlight. He didn't want to be seen. He didn't want anybody to be able to alert Voldemort that he was still alive. He wanted to pop out of the shadows and take down Voldemort before he even had a chance to act. He wanted to take him by surprise.

He gripped his wand tighter in his hand as he approached the small hill that he had faced Voldemort earlier, and froze at the sight before him. Voldemort was in a one on one duel with none other than Dumbledore. And by the looks of it, Dumbledore was losing. Harry watched in horror as Voldemort quickly flicked his wand at Dumbledore, sending Dumbledore's wand flying. Dumbledore stood there, looking over at the ex student of his, but Voldemort didn't even give him enough time to speak. He quickly sent a curse at Dumbledore, admitting red sparks from his wand. They hit Dumbledore in the chest and sent him flying from the hill and crashing into one of the castle walls that stood about 200 feet behind him. The wall crumbled slightly from the impact and Harry watched, eyes wide, as Dumbledore fell the few feet to the ground and then lay completely motionless.

"No." Harry breathed, shaking his head and watching, waiting for Dumbledore to move. Harry finally decided that he had wasted enough time waiting and sprinted towards the direction of his Headmaster. He reached him quickly and Harry gently grabbed Dumbledore's shoulders and dragged him into a deserted corridor where he would be safe. Harry ran over to the side of him and knelt down next to him. "Professor?" Harry asked calmly.

Harry lowered his ear towards Dumbledore's mouth and listened closely. He could just make out the slow breath of his headmaster. He looked back up and placed a hand on the old man's shoulder. "Professor Dumbledore?" Harry called, more urgently this time.

Dumbledore slowly stirred, admitting a groan, and then barely opening his eyes and looking up at Harry. "Oh, Harry. I was so… so afraid that you-"

Harry interrupted Dumbledore. "Professor, I need you to hang on. I'm going to go find help." Harry went to stand but Dumbledore wrapped his cold, boney hands around Harry's wrist.

"No." Dumbledore said his voice scratchy and broken. "By the time you get back I will already be dead."

"I can't just sit here and watch you die, Professor."

"Do you remember what I told you, Harry? Up in my office?" Dumbledore asked, looking Harry deeply in the eyes though his half moon glasses, now chipped and broken.

Harry looked at Dumbledore and shook his head. "I can't do it Professor. I thought about it and I can't kill you."

"I'm already dying Harry."

"I still can't." Harry shook his head urgently. He couldn't kill his headmaster, he couldn't kill anybody. The only person he was capable of ever killing would be Voldemort, and he wanted to keep it that way.

"Listen to me Harry. I told you there would be a time when it would be right to kill me. Now is the time." Dumbledore said, a small cough escaping his lips. Harry couldn't help but realize the blood that he spit up along with his cough. "You can do this Harry. You are one of the greatest wizards that ever lived and you can do this."

"No." Harry shook his head, tears now running down his cheeks. "No sir, I can't."

"If I die here now without your help, then Voldemort will be the one to have conquered me. Voldemort will become the true possessor of the elder wand. If that happens… the world you saw when you were eleven… it'll never exist again. The world you see now will always and forever be here." Harry licked his lips and shook his head, now looking up and watching the battle brewing outside the corridor. "And even though you won't be there to see it, everybody else will. Draco and Hermione will never get to raise their daughter, Ron will never find his happiness, Ginny will be without the love of her life," Harry looked down at Dumbledore at the mention of the girl he loved. "Everybody, muggles, muggleborns, purebloods, halfboods, squibs, will all lose everything they have."

"Did you know this would happen?" Harry asked though his tears.

"I'm sorry to put all of this on your shoulders Harry. It is unfair for a boy your age to have to deal with all this. But, you're not really a boy anymore… are you?" Dumbledore smiled up at Harry. Harry didn't smile back. He reached his hand up and wiped the tears from his cheeks. Dumbledore looked up at Harry with concern, and then with all his strength he had left, reached into his cloak and pulled out his wand. He brought the tip of his wand and placed it on his temple. Harry watched through tears stained eyes as Dumbledore extracted a memory from inside of him and placed it inside of a flask he had in his robes.

Dumbledore grabbed Harry's hand and encased the memory inside of it. "To prove that you're innocent." Dumbledore smiled up at Harry one last time and then closed his eyes. "You're not the one who killed me, but the one who helped me move on." Dumbledore said in a whisper.

Harry licked his lips as he watched the old man slowly dying before him. He watched the pain etch on his face and the cuts over his body bleed. He watched the bruises become larger and he watched as Dumbledore's face slowly fell. Harry took his shaking hands and picked his wand off the ground. He closed his eyes and allowed one more tear to fall down his cheeks as he placed the tip of his wand towards Dumbledore's heart.

He opened his eyes and watched the greatest wizard who ever lived, inhale his last breath. "I'm sorry… a-and thank you, Professor. For everything…." Harry whispered, only loud enough for Dumbledore to hear. And as Dumbledore exhaled, Harry muttered the curse he never thought would leave his lips. He watched the green shoot from his wand and enter the Headmasters body.

Harry closed his eyes, but he didn't cry. He inhaled a deep breath and placed his wand inside of his robes, along with the flask of Dumbledore's memory. He opened his eyes quickly and carefully took the wand still entwined in Dumbledore's hand. He then stood up, and with anger and grief pushing him on, stormed out of the corridor to finally finish off the only person standing in the way of everybody else's happy endings.

* * *

_One more after this and then the epilogue! Who's ready?_


	67. sixty seven: in each others hearts

_Last Chapter: Harry closed his eyes, but he didn't cry. He inhaled a deep breath and placed his wand inside of his robes, along with the flask of Dumbledore's memory. He opened his eyes quickly and carefully took the wand still entwined in Dumbledore's hand. He then stood up, and with anger and grief pushing him on, stormed out of the corridor to finally finish off the only person standing in the way of everybody else's happy endings._

* * *

He stormed his way through the battle, Dumbledore's wand gripped tightly in his hand and his words driven into his heart. He pushed through anybody who got in his way, but not many did. Foes and friends alike would take one look at him and stop what they were doing; watching as he quickly stormed his way up towards Voldemort.

His nostrils flared, palms layered in sweat, body covered in cuts and bruises, a headache that would send anybody running to the hospital wing for help, and a temper and determination to kill. He could feel the incline of the hill on the bottom of his shoes and quickly picked up the pace. Voldemort was right in front of him. He could see the red in his eyes. He just wondered if Voldemort could see the red in Harry's eyes as well.

"TOM!" Harry yelled at the top of his lungs when he was close enough to Voldemort. "Don't start celebrating yet!"

Voldemort turned around slowly, staring at Harry. "Back from the dead, are we Potter?"

"Seems to happen to me a lot." Harry stated simply, gripping Dumbledore wands even tighter, ready to attack at any moment. "To bad you won't have the same luck."

Voldemort let out a small laugh as he glared at Harry. "I have a feeling your luck will run out soon."

Harry laughed. "At least yours will run out first."

"Don't waste your breath boy!" Voldemort yelled, anger pulsating through his body now. "Don't you see what I have done?!"

"You destroyed the castle and you killed hundreds of innocent people! You call that luck?" Harry spat back.

"No, that's power! Luck is how you have managed to escape my grasps for the past 5 years now. You got lucky with the Sorcerer's Stone all because of your mother's love. You got lucky in the Chamber of Secrets when the basilisk attacked you. You got lucky in the Triwizard Tournament, just escaping by the hairs on the back of your neck. Everything was luck, but tonight, your luck will most diffidently run out." Voldemort laughed. "There's no more Dumbledore to save you now Potter. I have killed him and soon, all of your little friends will be dead as well."

"You didn't kill him!" Harry yelled, holding up Dumbledore's wand so Voldemort could see it clearly. "He asked me to take his life, to take his wand. Don't you recognize it Tom?" Harry asked with a smirk. "It's the elder wand!"

Voldemort cackled. "You're bluffing boy!" At his words, Voldemort shot the killing curse at Harry. Harry blocked it simply, sending it flying into the sky and out towards the Forbidden Forest.

Voldemort's smirk faded as Harry's grew.

It was at that moment that Harry glanced around and behind him. Surrounding him were all the people he had come to love. To his right stood Aurors and The Order and behind him stood the D.A., everybody he had once taught how to defend themselves, all of them still alive and looking well. Harry turned to his left and noticed the teaching staff of Hogwarts along with all the other students who stayed behind to help. And in front of them stood none other than his best friends in the entire world. Ron looked back at Harry, nodding his head, a determined and do-it look on his face. To Ron's right stood Draco, smiling back at him. It was when Draco turned to his right that Harry followed his eyes. Standing, locking hands tightly with Draco, was Hermione. Harry smiled at her and noticed that she had Rosie tucked in her arms.

Harry grinned at his friends and watched them reached into their pockets. Ron pulled out the head of a snake, Nagini, along with the Slytherin Locket and tossed it on the ground. Draco pulled out Hufflepuff's cup and Ravenclaw's Diadem, chucking them next to the snake head and the Locket. Harry's eyes then traveled to Hermione. She merely looked down at Rosie, then back to Harry and nodded her head, smiling back at Harry with delight as a tear ran down her cheek.

Harry understood. All of Voldemort's horcruxes were destroyed. He was finally mortal.

Harry turned to Voldemort, who was watching the crowd in disbelief and anger. "You're like all of us now Tom…. Mortal."

Voldemort looked into Harry's eyes and Harry watched his nostrils flare. "You might kill me boy, but this world will never become what you dream of it becoming. There will always be sides to choose from. There will always be prejudice."

Harry merely shook his head. "We have already come together. We have come together to stop what you believe to be right, and because of that, this world will be a better place. A better world without you in it." Voldemort merely shook with anger at Harry's words. "And just to prove you wrong, I think you should know who destroyed your horcruxes. Hufflepuff's cup was destroyed by a Slytherin, Ravenclaw's Diadem by a Ravenclaw, Slytherin's Locket by a Gryffindor, and your snake Nagini, probably the only real friend you _ever_ had, was killed by a Hufflepuff. Each house had a hand at destroying one of your horcruxes. If that's not standing up against prejudice then I don't know what is." Harry's smirk faded slightly as he glared at Voldemort, gripping Dumbledore's wand so tightly he could feel the blood moving through his veins.

"We have all come together Tom. We have all come together to take down the only thing stopping us from seeing the world we dream of seeing every day." At Harry's words, the people surrounding him all raised their wands to the sky. Within seconds, the tips off all the wands became illuminated, lighting up the darkness surrounding them. It was everybody's way of showing that they agreed, that that was why they were all there. "We have all come together to put an end to what you have done! We've come together to say goodbye to Tom Marvolo Riddle!"

Harry's words sent a spark off inside of Voldemort. He flung his wand towards Harry, the killing curse flying off the tip and heading straight at Harry for the third time that night. This time, though, was different. Harry knew that everything was going to be okay. His friends were all standing behind him, pushing him on by simply lighting up their wands, simply telling him that they weren't going anywhere. They wanted nothing more than to see Voldemort, the people who supported him, and all the things he did, go down in flames.

That was why Harry lifted his wand. That was why Harry muttered the spell that caused the most unforgivable spell to bounce right back towards Voldemort. That was why Harry was able to watch as the darkest wizard to ever live was smacked dead in the heart and fell back onto the ground. That was what gave Harry the strength to do what he knew had to be done. That was what ended it all.

Silence engulfed the grounds and the castle of Hogwarts for only a few seconds until everybody was cheering. People yelled, people cried, and people threw themselves onto each other and embraced in hugs. Some people even pointed their wands to the sky, allowing an amazing fireworks display to be shown to every part of the castle.

And then, before long, the group that had stood behind Harry sprinted off in all directions, running after every Death Eater they saw, capturing them to send them off to Azkaban for their long awaited stay.

When the hill emptied, all four friends found themselves looking at each other's eyes with the biggest smiles spread across their face. Without any words said, they all rushed at each other and embraced each other in a hug, leaning on one another and crying.

They embraced in each other's arms and forever in each other's hearts.

------------

They stood on top of the hill. Harry in the middle of the group, Ron to his right, Draco to his left, and Hermione holding onto Draco's hand tightly. They watched as Death Eater after Death Eater was taken into custody, very little escaping. And then they all looked at each other and exhaled a deep breath before walking down the hill together and towards the Great Hall.

The Great Hall was a sight to see. People were celebrating, still embracing each other in hugs. Some tended to the injured, which to everybody's delight wasn't that many. The walls that used to line with each house's banner no longer held them. Instead, the banners had been taken off, a simple sign that there would be no more prejudice.

Hermione and Draco looked at each other and smiled, the hope that they would be able to live in peace with each other and the world, growing to its full potential.

It didn't take long for everybody to realize that Harry had entered the room. The room got silent and then erupted into louder cheers then before. Members of the D.A. rushed forward, grabbing Harry and lifting him up onto their shoulders. Harry smiled at the crowd, all cheering for him, for their white night. He glanced down at his friends and then lowered his head to whisper something into Dean's ear. Dean looked up and him and smiled, then glanced over at Ron, Hermione, and Draco.

Dean then turned to the older students standing around and cheering for Harry and whispered something in their ear as well. The older students quickly rushed over to Ron, Hermione, and Draco, and before either of them knew what was happening, they were being hoisted up into the air and onto the shoulders of the people surrounding Harry.

Harry smiled at his friends and they smiled back, understanding. Harry didn't do this alone, and this was his way of showing the world that he had help.

And everybody understood.

------------

The thing that came after the celebrations was grief. Grief for the dead. But the worst grief of all was the grief that everybody held towards their Headmaster.

Dumbledore wasn't forgotten for long. Harry had let The Order know what had happened and where his body was laying. They quickly went to retrieve it. He then had to explain to the Aurors what had happened, handing them the memory for proof. They took the memory but assured Harry that after everything he did for the wizarding world, it would be a crime in itself to put him in Azkaban.

They decided to bury Dumbledore on the hill where Voldemort was killed. He was to be buried in front of the school and everybody else who attended. The burial would take place the next day, and then after that, the reconstruction of Hogwarts would begin.

Students would need a school to come back to.

-------------

The celebrations had started to come to an end at Hogwarts, even though they would never really end.

Voldemort, the darkest wizard to ever live, was dead. How could you ever stop celebrating that?

Hermione, Draco, Ron, and Harry all found their way over towards the Weasley family. Mrs. Weasley took one look at them and burst into tears, wrapping all four of them in a tight embrace. Mr. Weasley gave Hermione and Ron a hug, while he gave Harry and Draco and shake of the hand.

Harry and Ginny then found each other, and it wasn't long before the entire Great Hall was aware that Harry's heart belonged to Ginny, and hers to his.

Mrs. Weasley, who noticed Hermione still holding onto Rosie, offered to take Rosie off of her hands so Hermione could go enjoy the celebrations like everybody else. Hermione didn't want to pry, but Mrs. Weasley insisted, so Hermione agreed.

With Rosie being watched over safely by the woman Hermione thought of as a second mother, she turned to Draco and smiled. He smiled back and Hermione quickly entwined her fingers in his. "I love you." She said.

Draco smiled back and laughed. "I'm never going to get tired of hearing you say that." Hermione laughed and Draco gave her a hard kiss on the lips. When they released, Hermione held tightly onto Draco's hand and they quickly made their escape out of the Great Hall.

They made their way through the castle until they came to the empty portrait of The Fat Lady. Hermione pulled the door apart and dragged Draco in after her. Once they were securely inside the deserted Gryffindor Common Room, the couple threw themselves onto each other. Hermione wrapped her arms around Draco's neck as he rested his hands on her waist.

Still kissing, Hermione brought her legs up and wrapped them around Draco's waist, running her hands through his blond locks as he placed his hand on her bottom to help hold her up. With Hermione still wrapped tightly around Draco, he made his way towards one of the staircases leading up the girl's dormitory.

He climbed the stairs slowly, still embracing each other in kisses until they reached the door. Draco pushed Hermione so her back was on the door and Hermione unfolded her legs from around Draco waist, having to hold onto Draco from the kisses making her dizzy and almost losing her footing.

Draco laughed a little and smiled at Hermione. "Are you okay?" He asked, a little light headed himself.

Hermione just looked up at him and smiled. "I just can't wait to be there when we send Rosie off to Hogwarts. I can't wait till we have a hundred kids together so we can watch all of them go off to school as well. I can't wait till we watch them grow up, graduate, get jobs, get a family, and grow old together" Hermione gave Draco a quick kiss as he smiled at the way she was able to remember everything he said to her while he thought she was on her death bed. She leaned in closer to Draco and gave him one more kiss before whispering in his ear. "I can't wait to spend that rest of my life with you."

Draco didn't wait another minute. He wrapped his arms around Hermione and kissed her more passionately then he ever kissed her before. Hermione slowly reached down and grabbed the handle of the door. She opened it slowly and wrapped her legs around Draco's waist again. They slowly made their way towards the door, shutting it behind them and finally moving on with the rest of their lives.

* * *


	68. one year later

_It's sad to think that this story has finally come to an end. I have been writing this story for close to six months now and i'm happy to have actually finished it. the reason i was able to finish it was thanks to all of you guys constantly reviewing and keeping my spirits up. thanks!_

_the one person i want to thank in particular is riahana175. you have literally been with me since the very begining, reviewing every single chapter and even giving me ideas when i had the worst writers block EVER. you are also the reason this story went as far as it went. so THANKS!!_

_but even though this story is over, theres still the sequel. don't forget to add me to your author alert of just keep an eye out for it. its called: a rose is a rose. its going to be great and i cant wait to have all of you lovely readers with me on that story as well._

_i hope you liked the way i ended it, because i know i did!_

_heres the little epilogue i promised and see you guys at the sequel!_

_-alosercanwin_

* * *

ONE YEAR LATER

The ceremony had been amazing. They had wanted a small wedding, family and friends only, but once word got out that Draco and Hermione were getting married in the wizarding way, everybody wanted in. They had hired security to keep people like Rita Skeeter out, and so far they had done a fairly good job. Nothing more than curious, un-invited eyes were able to sneak in. But Hermione and Draco didn't mind really. As long as they kept their distance, didn't bother them, and caused no harm to any of their guest, then Hermione and Draco were content.

But they knew that nobody in the garden where the ceremony was being held at was going to be harmed. Voldemort had been dead now for a year, all his followers having died in the battle with him, gone to Azkaban to live out the rest of their life behind bars, or had switched sides just in time for them to escape death or imprisonment. This thought, only made the day that much greater.

Hermione and Draco stood side by side, hands locked together, as they watched all the guest passing through the gardens to come and give them their congratulations and tell them what a beautiful ceremony it had been.

Because the ceremony was that… it was beautiful.

Hermione was somewhat surprised when Draco told her that he was choosing Harry for his best man, but in another way she wasn't surprised at all. Harry, Ron, Hermione, and Draco had become so close after the end of the war, that anybody who saw them all together would think that they had been best friends for life, and Hermione had to smile at this. She would often watch them, all intensely talking about quidditch or the newest brooms at the dinner table, and she would just smile. Never in a million years would she think that Harry Potter and Ronald Weasley would become best friends with Draco Malfoy. The sentence didn't even make sense… not until now.

Hermione had surprised everybody with her choice for her maid of honor. They had all expected her to choose Ginny, especially since Ginny and her and become even closer after the war and after Harry and Ginny's marriage. But Hermione knew that Ginny would understand her choice. Ron had always been there for Hermione. He had even loved her as more than a sister at one point, but now he knew and accepted the fact that Hermione and Draco were just happy together. And he didn't mind, because he was happy being a brother to Hermione rather than a boyfriend or a husband. He was also honored, and surprised, when Hermione asked him to be her maid of honor.

Ron stood proudly behind her in his nice black and white dress robes. He was the perfect maid of honor, Harry was the perfect best man, and Rosie made the perfect flower girl. She had caught onto walking rather quickly and had no trouble walking down the aisle with her little flower basket, her auntie Ginny walking right behind her in case she lost her balance or something caught her attention and dragged her away from what she was supposed to be doing. But of course, their little Rosie never lost track of her goal, she was perfect. _Everything_ was perfect.

Hermione and Draco smiled and thanked each person who approached them from where they were standing. A small little corner in the garden, designed to take pictures before the wedding, was where each person found them. Draco was wearing his fathers dress robes, the same one his father wore to his own wedding, while Hermione wore a strapless long and elegant wedding dress, a bow tied around her waist and sitting on the small of her back. Her hair was curly, like always, only pulled back into a white clip that matched her dress perfectly, only allowing a few strands of hair to sit on the side of her face, colliding with her bangs perfectly. On to top it all off, she even sported a small bump on her stomach, the evidence of her and Draco's second child, this one actually planned.

Hermione and Draco smiled and thanked one of Draco's distant cousins. As she left, the couple stared down past the flower bed a few feet away to see a little girl with pin point straight brown hair wobbling towards them. Hermione laughed slightly at Ginny walking cautiously behind her, hand by her back, making sure she didn't lose her balance and end up in one of the small ponds with the fishes or in the flower beds, covering her dress in dirt.

Hermione bent down and stuck her hands out, moving her fingers and ushering Rosie towards her. Rosie smiled at seeing her mother and walked as quickly as she could into her arms. "Mummy." Rosie said simply before Hermione picked her and held her on her hip. Rosie glanced over at Hermione and then at Draco. She stuck her hand out towards Draco and smiled even bigger. "Daddy."

"Hello Rosie." Draco said with a smile, grabbing his daughters hand and shaking it lightly. Rosie quickly pulled it away and dug her head in Hermione's chest, watching Draco out of the corner of her eye with a playful smile on her face. Draco and Hermione laughed at their daughters playfulness before somebody approached them with a smile on his face. Draco recognized him immediately and his smile faded, being replaced by a frown. The man approached them and smiled at Hermione, who returned the gesture. "Might I ask who invited you Avery?" Draco snapped.

"Draco." Hermione snapped back quietly, trying not to make a scene. "Be nice to our guest."

"Our 'guest' is a former deatheater and I would like to know how he got in because I didn't invite him and I can't image that you have." Draco said through his teeth, trying not to show his frustration to the watching crowd.

"I _did_ happen to invite him, Draco." Hermione said glancing at Draco.

"Why? He was a deatheater?"

"And you weren't?" Hermione snapped, being irritated by Draco's argumentative tone. "Mr. Avery was a deatheater, but like so many others, his name was cleared from the list. He is a much a deatheater as Harry is. Besides… he's the one who saved me from your Manor. He's the reason I'm standing where I am today and I will always be in debt to him." Hermione finished, smiling at Avery.

"I can assure you Mrs. Malfoy, it is I who will be in debt to you. Without your amazing bravery that you showed when brought to Voldemort and without your speeches that you gave that caused all of us to think about what we really were doing, I would probably be in a cell in Azkaban right now."

"I would hardly call them 'speeches' Avery." Hermione said with a smile, glancing at Rosie for a second as she messed with her curls.

"You can call them whatever you want, but they were bloody brilliant. I actually think it's amazing that this all started out with a suggestion, to be honest with you." Avery stated, looking around at the festivities going on around him.

"What are you talking about?" Hermione asked, a friendly smile still plastered on her face although she was rather confused.

"Voldemort called the deatheaters for a meeting. He wanted to know if any of us had any ideas of how we could bring down Potter. He wanted suggestions. Somebody finally came up with the idea for Draco to… well… you know." Avery explained, finding the conversation very awkward all the sudden.

"What do you mean _someone_?" Draco questioned. "From what I can recall, Avery, it was you who made the suggestion for me to rape Hermione."

Avery looked at Hermione with an apologetic look. She just smiled back at him slightly. "Yes, well, I was a power hungry parasite then. It was a mistake and I regret it to this day."

"It's okay, I forgive you." Hermione said kindly.

Avery smiled. "The both of you kind of owe me a thank you, however." Avery looked around again before turning back to a confused Draco and Hermione. "You know, for all the things that have happened to you."

"I don't think we understand." Hermione stated.

"Well, if Draco never raped you then you wouldn't have gotten pregnant. If you didn't get pregnant then you wouldn't have realized that the two of you are actually perfect for each other. If it wasn't for me, the two of you would probably never have fallen in love. My suggestion turned out to be good after all, didn't it? Pretty much unexpected, but still really good."

"No, it wasn't." Draco said simply, turning and smiling at Hermione. He reached out and grabbed her free hand, locking their fingers together. He looked deeply into her honey brown eyes, now looking at him with confusion. He smiled at her deeply before giving her a soft, yet loving kiss on the forehead. "It was an unexpectedly _beautiful_ suggestion."


End file.
